Die Consumer Center continually lists the latest phishing emails as part of its phishing radar. Of course, the list is not exhaustive; other emails are also circulating. However, it shows which emails users should definitely keep an eye out for. This week, the following companies and organizations are included.
Consumers fall into a trap
Deutsche Telekom
It is not uncommon for communications service providers such as Vodafone and O2 to deceive their customers and illegally take money out of their pockets. The consumer advice center recently reported cases of contracts being foisted on Vodafone. And now consumers must once again beware of fraud. This time, however, Telekom customers are in the spotlight and have to worry about losing 425.83 euros. The responsibility for this lies not with the telecommunications company, but with cyber criminals.
In a letter addressed to Telekom customers, they are currently talking about internal problems that have led to a change in the way Telekom delivers invoices. The recipients are then presented with an invoice for just over 425 euros for the month of August. This can be downloaded via a link provided.
The bottom line is that the letter is a scam. However, the type of scam is unclear. In principle, it could be either phishing or a simple payment scam. Furthermore, clicking on the link can also initiate the download of malware. We therefore recommend moving the email to the spam folder without answering it.
DKB and Commerzbank
This week, too, bank customers are traditionally the focus of cyber criminals. DKB is the first to do so. Customers are being asked to update their DKB accounts as quickly as possible. Otherwise, access to the account will be restricted. The account is again to be updated using a button provided. A button that can also be found in a similar form in a recent Commerzbank email. The content of this is about a newly introduced function called “Commerzbank PhotoTAN”. This must now be set up – with the help of the PhotoTAN activation letter. Since both emails are classic phishing, they should also end up in the spam folder at best.
DHL
Last but not least, a phishing email in the name of DHL is currently circulating. It talks about a parcel delivery and the customs fees that will be incurred. Recipients are asked to make a payment of 2.99 euros to avoid delays in delivery. Here, too, it is not clear whether the cyber criminals are after banking information or simply the amount of money to be paid.
Read more now
Again? Car insurance increases for 4.7 million drivers
Phishing 2024 – previous cases
The list of phishing attempts in Germany is getting longer and longer. It is clear that it mainly affects large companies. They have many customers and therefore many potential victims of phishing. This list shows which companies have already been used by phishing scammers in 2024 to steal your data or money:
- 1&1
- Comdirect
- Commerzbank
- Consorsbank
- Deutsche Bahn
- Deutsche Bank
- DHL
- Disney+
- DKB
- FedEx
- HypoVereinsbank
- ING
- IONIC
- Klarna
- LBB
- McAfee
- N26
- Netflix
- PayPal
- Postbank
- Santander
- Credit report
- Savings Bank
- Targobank
- Telekom
- TF Bank
- VR-Bank
- WEB
What is phishing actually?
When you think of cybercriminals, you immediately think of Hollywood images of strangers in hoodies sitting in a basement in front of five screens, looking at the Pentagon. The truth, however, is often very different. You don’t need five screens or a great deal of knowledge about security software to get your hands on Internet users’ money. You don’t even need a hoodie. Many users will voluntarily give up their login details if you ask them to.
All that is needed is an email in, for example, Amazon-Look, which informs the recipient about unusual account activity or a change in the terms and conditions. The perpetrators then ask their victims to authorize themselves by clicking on a link and logging into their account. However, the link does not lead to the Amazon website, but to a copy. The login data entered here goes directly to the cyber criminals. Phishing has now become a veritable industry.
Other scams & protection mechanisms:
How to recognize phishing emails
As soon as the fraudsters have obtained your user data, they can use it for identity theft, for example. If the login data belongs to a service linked to the bank account, your wallet could also suffer. That’s why you should pay attention to emails in general and messages from the above-mentioned providers in particular. Does the email contain spelling mistakes? Is it addressed directly to customers? Is the sender or the email address of the sender in the header of the email actually PayPal? Does the linked website belong to the online payment service, or is the URL rather cryptic? All of these questions can reveal a phishing email.
Another good self-protection measure is two-factor authentication (2FA). This is a double login protection, where a second login barrier is set up in addition to the login data – for example in the form of a code that is sent to a previously stored telephone number. Cyber criminals usually cannot get hold of this so easily. Although this line of protection is not insurmountable. You can find more information on the topic in our phishing guide:
Read more now
Phishing scam: What users of Amazon, PayPal & Co. need to watch out for
About our links
We use these symbols to mark affiliate links. If you click on such a link or button or make a purchase via it, we receive a small fee from the respective website operator. This has no effect on the price of a purchase. However, you help us to continue to be able to offer inside digital free of charge. Thank you very much!
