How to Check for Fake Links in Emails?

Email is the most vital source of official communication. However, due to its widespread adaptation, it has also been vulnerable to threats. Hackers and Phishers keep finding ways to breach data through email scams, which usually involve malicious links attached to fake emails.

Therefore, it is essential to be cautious when links are received with unauthenticated emails. Various steps must be taken to determine the legitimacy of the email. If you receive an email claiming to be from your company, cross-check and confirm it from the sender.

According to research by Astra Security, cybercriminals often hide malware in Microsoft attachments, with word attachments accounting for 39.9% of links.

Follow the precautions below to detect fake emails and malicious links in your inboxes and keep your account safe from malware.

Avoid Opening Unfamiliar Emails

Avoid emails from unknown sources. Read the context of the email. If the attached link doesn’t belong to any authentic source, it is better to avoid it.

But if the email you receive looks like a job opportunity, you must check its legitimacy before clicking on any attached link. Detecting whether the email was sent from an authentic company can be challenging.

Some tips include looking up the email address or telephone number mentioned in the email and cross-checking these contact details from the company’s official site. Most companies have their email accounts and contact numbers mentioned on their sites.

Verify URLs Before Clicking

Hackers make the URLs look similar to authentic URLs. Since creating two precisely similar URLs is impossible, they make a tiny, unnoticeable link change. Users usually ignore this change.

Here are some ways to check fake URLs.

Verify the Sender

Always check the sender if you receive a suspicious link. If it is someone you can directly contact somewhere other than email, contact them and ask them about the email. If you have been getting emails from that sender previously, match the sender’s name and email address.

Hover over the link

Move your cursor over the attached link; it will show the webpage’s display. Observe it without clicking on the link. Then, search the company or page’s official website. View and observe its display. Match both interfaces and recognize any differences. 

Spot Typos and Grammar Mistakes

The alteration is usually done by adding a misspelled word, a different sign, or a symbol. For example, if a company’s URL reads www.example_company.com, its duplicate, unauthentic URL may read www.example-company.com. Focusing on the attached URL and re-checking the original can give hints about the fake URL.

Consult Support and Use Antivirus Software

It is important to have reliable anti-virus and anti-malware software. These tools can prevent your devices from malfunctioning and provide data backup. Companies must provide their employees with the best antivirus software.

Implement Email Authentication Methods

Various email authentication methods can detect fake emails and their attacked links. 

• If an email is sent from an unauthorized sender, SPF detects and marks it as spam. The links attached in flagged emails can then be avoided.
• DKIM adds a digital signature from the sender’s side for business emails. Recipients of such emails must look for the specific signature to verify the email.
• DMARC is another protocol used to handle emails that fail authentication. It helps emails identify and block phishing emails.

Identify Warning Signs

Most unauthentic emails have some common warning flags. Users must know these warning signs to notice them in the emails they receive. Some common warning signs among emails and attached links are as follows.

• There’s always an urgency in scam emails as they want the reader to open it immediately. They will ask the users to act immediately by clicking the attached link.
• They usually start with an alert instead of a personalized greeting message.
• The email accounts or attached links have misspelled words or grammatical mistakes. (used to create a similar email address to the original address).
• Errors or unbelievable information (offer) in the body of the email.

Verify Phone Numbers

If an email includes contact details at the end of the body paragraphs, it must be checked for legitimacy. You can check the phone number and link mentioned on the original website. You can find the contact information of companies on their websites.

Scan Links for Safety

Links can also be scanned like the tools discussed above to check phone numbers. Various software provides this feature. The most widely accepted tool for scanning links is Virustotal. To use this tool, Open their official website. Type the link you want to monitor. Don’t copy-paste the link; it will redirect the tool to analyze the eFax page instead of the actual address. Scan it.

What to Do After Clicking a Fake Link?

Suppose you have already clicked on the malicious link attached to the email. Here are some steps to avoid getting your system hacked.

• Don’t add any information if the malicious website asks for your personal data, demographics, or account passwords.
• Reset your email account password when you realize the link is spam.
• Disconnect the internet immediately if you see any suspicious activity.
• Avoid opening any page from the malicious site. Do not click on anything and close the site.
• For extra precautions, run the anti-virus software to scan the device.

Conclusion

Despite updating email security with authentication protocol, humans tend to believe everything they see online. Getting tricked by malicious emails and links online is easy. Taking the steps mentioned above can help prevent scams. 

Various tools and software are also helpful in detecting malicious emails. Companies must provide proper training to their employees to check for the legitimacy of links before clicking. Use PowerDMARC to keep yourself safe from the fake links that come with scam emails.