Phishing Email Subject Lines

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Phishing Email Subject Lines

That's just one trick to watch for. Another is a subject line that makes the email seem super urgent. Below are the most commonly used phishing subject lines along with ways to stay protected.

Phishing attacks don't just target the everyday person. Sometimes, they go after companies and their employees in what's known as Business Email Compromise scams.

Basically, the scammer attempts to trick employees into sending money transfers or handing out sensitive information, by impersonating executive email accounts. These attacks are initiated either by social engineering tricks, email spoofing or malware, targeting employees from companies.

Cybersecurity firm Barracuda recently analyzed 360,000 phishing emails to find out subject lines that were most commonly used and successful. There seems to be a theme to common subject lines: Scammers try to create a sense of urgency.

Top subject lines in BEC attacks:

Request

Follow up

Urgent/Important

Are you available?/Are you at your desk?

Payment Status

Hello

Other

Purchase

Invoice Due

Re:

Direct Deposit

Expenses

Payroll

The simple subject line of "Request" was most commonly used, and it wasn't close. Request was used 36% of the time, with "Follow up" coming in a distant second at 14%.

The study also showed that over 70% of attack emails tried to establish a rapport or sense of urgency. And, many subject lines make it seem the topic had been previously discussed.

If you receive an email with any of the subject lines on the list, be cautious.

The most important rule to outsmarting phishing scams is to avoid clicking on malicious links. That means you shouldn't click on web links or open PDF attachments found in unsolicited email messages, it could be a phishing attack. If you need to conduct business with any company, it's always best to type its web address directly into your browser. Never trust a link that's inside a message.

If you believe you have been a victim of this type of scam you should promptly report it to the IC3's website at www.IC3.gov. The IC3's complaint database links complaints together to refer them to the appropriate law enforcement agency for case consideration.

Remember - always watch for scams!