In the first six months of 2021, Social Media Phishing attacks against businesses rose 47%. Social media platforms will be an ever more tantalizing target for phishing attacks and other scams. To counteract the growing threat of Social Media Phishing attacks we need an optimal mix of security best-practices and mindful awareness.

With more employees working from home, off of personal networks that have less securities put in place than in-office networks, it’s important to be aware of phishing attacks and what you can do to protect yourself. Mid Valley IT strengthens the security of any internet connected devices by installing and maintaining firewalls, antivirus, security software, 2 Factor Authentication, Mobile Device Managing, ensuring proper device security settings are in place and providing Security Awareness Trainings to aid our clients against Cyber-Attacks.

First, use the privacy controls on personal and business social media accounts to keep Personal Identifying Information out of public view. This includes: 

1. Location
2. Full Name
3. Contact Information
4. Published Posts
5. List of Friends, Family or Business Connections

Second, take what you learned from the SLAM method (Check out our previous post about the SLAM method) and adapt it to the social media environment. Use this method in order to determine whether or not an email, text or other message might be the bait in a phishing scam.

1. Sender: Don’t accept message requests from outside your trusted network. Analyze the Sender’s email address carefully.
2. Links: Do not click on any Links in social media posts, profiles or messages. Hover your mouse over links, without clicking. To see their true path.
3. Attachments: Use caution when opening unsolicited or unexpected attachments. Never download or open attachments from social media posts, profiles or messages. 
4. Message: Look carefully at the body of any social media message or post that you are interacting with. Watch for misspellings and “out of character” phrasing, within the body of an email.

Be mindful of “Fun” quizzes and challenges that encourage you to disclose your own personal information and broadcast it online. The social media environment is here to stay and with a few security best-practices and a little awareness it can be a safe, fun and productive space for individuals and business alike. If you don’t know where to start, Mid Valley IT can help secure your organization from cyber attacks. Give us a call 1 (800) 931-2043.