Windows only: Truemark Email Identification is a simple tool in the defence against fraudulent emails. Whether you’re in desktop or web-based email, you’re given instant visual verification that an email is legitimate. While there’s no substitute for a healthy dose of paranoia with a chaser of concern for privacy and security, Iconix Truemark complements any email setup. Truemark adds a small icon next to any corporate or web service’s name, but only if it’s been checked against a list of domain keys and sender IDs maintained by Iconix. Mouse over the icon and you get more detail; don’t see an icon, you know Amazon might not actually need a password reset. Truemark currently works with a variety of webmail applictions via Firefox and Internet Explorer plugins, including Gmail, AOL Mail, Hotmail, Yahoo Mail and with client-based email like Outlook 2003/2007 and Outlook Express. Iconix Truemark is freeware, with plugins available for Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Outlook, on Windows only. Iconix Truemark [via gHacks]
If you’ve read recent speculation that a Gmail vulnerability may be lurking in the depths of your email account, Google wants to assure you that Gmail is secure as ever. According to the post on the Google Online Security Blog, stories claiming a Gmail vulnerability was at fault in recent domain thefts are inaccurate; instead, Google says a phishing scheme was to blame.
A new local survey from longstanding free antivirus favourite AVG gives some interesting insights into where Australians get caught out online. Now, this should be put into context: the survey found that 39% of Australians had been a victim of some kind of ‘cyber theft’, which is less than half of us. But which were the most common problems?
Most spam and phish-bait emails are easy to spot, but once in a while, some creative subject can leave you guessing whether a message is legitimate or not. If you’re an Outlook user, the Productivity Portfolio blog recommends never opening those messages (and potentially proving your existence to said spammers); instead, use the “Message Options” dialogue, available with a right-click on any message, and check the reply-to address and header information for signs of fakery, such as slightly-spoofed email addresses (wa1mart.com, paypaI.com, and the like) and odd entries in the To: and X-Mailer field. You’ll get a better chance of stopping the spam flow, and the satisfaction of not getting fooled again. Using Outlook Message Options [Productivity Portfolio]
We’ve all seen “urgent” emails from exiled princes telling us to act quickly and hand over our bank account or other sensitive information. Since we’re savvy folks, we promptly hit the Delete button and move on with our lives. That said, not all phishing scams are so obvious, and sometimes a phishing email can be very convincing. The Official Google Blog highlights a few simple tips that will greatly diminish your chances of getting hooked by a phishing scam. For example, the post recommends always going directly to the site yourself rather than clicking on links in suspicious emails, which will ensure you’re dealing with your the source and not some nefarious site set up to look like your bank. Some of the tips are old hat, but it’s a good post to send on to friends and family who don’t have that discerning eye for phishing that you do. Let’s hear your tried-and-true anti-phishing methods in the comments. How to avoid getting hooked [Official Google Blog]
