Sophisticated new threat actors, evolving phishing tactics, and a $800,000 business email compromise (BEC) scam in the second half of 2020 all signal big trouble ahead, according to new analysis from the Agari Cyber Intelligence Division (ACID). As captured in our H1 2021 Email Fraud & Identity Deception Trends Report , successful attacks on Magellan Health, GoDaddy, and the SolarWinds "hack of...

In July 2020, we published a report on a Russian-based BEC group we called Cosmic Lynx . In that report , we described the tactics used by the group, which included its targeting of senior executives at large companies with a global footprint and how it uses mergers and acquisitions (M&A) themes in its BEC email lures. Shortly after we published the report, we saw a significant decrease in Cosmic...

Why do you need DMARC to protect your email domains from being leveraged in phishing attacks? To get the full picture, let's look at the basics—and how DMARC came to be. What is DMARC? Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance, or DMARC , is an open email authentication protocol that helps senders protect their email domains from being spoofed by fraudsters in phishing attacks...

Curious how BIMI can protect your email? I’ll explain what BIMI is, how it works, and how you can use it to protect your brand’s email communications. What is BIMI? Brand Indicators for Message Identification, or BIMI, provides a standardized method for businesses to showcase their brand logo next to the subject line of their authenticated emails so they stand out in crowded inboxes, with built-in...

CISOs and their teams are about to get some serious performance enhancers in their high-stakes race against email security threats. According to the FBI, phishing campaigns, business email compromise (BEC) scams, and other advanced email attacks have resulted in $26 billion in business losses over the course of three years. Then 2020 happened. With 75 million corporate employees even now still...

Over the course of my technical career, I’ve always thought of Oauth2 to, frankly, be a bit of a pain. Oauth2 offers a mind boggling amount of possibilities and is the basis of many authorization workflows. However, I have found the documentation and supporting examples of how to integrate Oauth2 somewhat lacking. I hope that someone out in the ether will find this blog post and save a few days of...

Implementing DMARC at its highest enforcement level is critically important to security and messaging operations. But it's also just the first step to realizing the full value of your DMARC program. To understand why, let's start with the basics. DMARC , which stands for Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance, can stop fraudsters from spoofing your domain and impersonating...

What is email spoofing, how does it work, and why is it so dangerous to your company? We’ll explain everything you need to proactively stop attackers from spoofing your email address. Email Spoofing: What Is It? Email spoofing is when a fraudster forges an email header’s ‘From’ address to make it appear as if it was sent by someone else, usually a known contact like a high-level executive or...

Business email compromise ( BEC ) actors are exploring alternative cash-out methods for spiriting away the profits from their crimes. Traditional bank accounts have long been the go-to choice for email scammers seeking to cash out the funds they've pilfered from organizations they victimize. Just since 2016, BEC groups have defrauded businesses out of more than $26 billion worldwide. But over the...

Office 365 phishing emails come in common patterns. I'll list them here and also cover Office 365 anti-phishing features for prevention, detection, and response. Today, the typical Office 365 phishing emails direct users to fake Office 365 Sign-in pages. The victim submits their credentials, effectively handing over their password. Fraudsters use that login to access the victim’s address book...

We'll cover what DKIM for email is, why your company needs it, how it works, how to set DKIM up, and additional ways to prevent email spoofing attacks. What is DKIM? First, let’s clarify what DKIM is in email. DomainKeys Identified Mail is a technique that uses your domain name to sign your emails with a digital “signature” so your customers know it’s really you sending those emails and that they...

In this post, we will look at 5 keys to DMARC success both organizationally and in enterprise-wide implementation. Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance (DMARC) is a standard email authentication protocol that plays an essential role in any organization’s cyber security arsenal. That’s because DMARC is key to protecting your business, customers, and partners from email...

Over the last five years, Business Email Compromise (BEC) has evolved into the predominant cyber threat businesses face today. Since 2016, businesses have lost at least $26 billion as a result of BEC scams and, based on the most recent FBI IC3 report , losses from BEC attacks grew another 37 percent in 2019—accounting for 40 percent of all cybercrime losses over the course of the year. The...

We'll explain how to configure DMARC for your company's email, including what you'll need and how to add DMARC to your DNS. Just follow these DMARC setup steps! Before we begin, here’s a high-level overview of how to add DMARC to your DNS. Add your DMARC record into your DNS Select the TXT record type Add the host value (see details below) Add the value information (see details below) Save the...

With cyber gangs leveraging business email compromise (BEC) attacks that actively exploit their targets' level of DMARC adoption, CISOs have been ratcheting up email security. Until now, the need to dial up defenses against imposters posing as senior executives in email attacks has been increasingly forcing legitimate business correspondence into quarantine. The chain reaction kneecaps commerce...

Blocking SendGrid email traffic isn't a realistic option for most businesses hit by a barrage of phishing attacks emanating from compromised accounts at the Twilio-owned email service provider in recent months. Instead, Agari leverages a strategic data modeling approach to neutralize the threat while enabling legitimate SendGrid-distributed emails to safely reach employee inboxes. More on that in...

For a growing number of email marketers, it may be "BIMI or bust." As of June 30, nearly 5,300 companies have adopted Brand Indicators for Message Identification ( BIMI ), a new email standard for showcasing a brand's logo next to its email messages in recipient inboxes, with built-in protections against phishing-based brand spoofing. The tally reflects a 3.8X increase in the number of brands...

If you haven't deployed Domain-based Messaging Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance (DMARC) to protect your brand from being impersonated in phishing scams, there are pressing reasons to jump on it now. Without a doubt, these are extraordinary times for individuals and organizations alike as we've been forced to change the way we work, shop, play, and live seemingly overnight, and for far...

With marketers more dependent on digital channels, many may accelerate their tests of Google's AMP for Email technology in search of an edge. But without an email protocol called Domain-based Messaging Authentication, Reporting and Conformance ( DMARC ), fraudsters could weaponize the trust customers expect from your brand for their own evil intentions and put consumers and businesses at risk. The...