Phishing is a common tactic in cybercrime, with which cybercriminals try to steal personal information or passwords. They usually do this by sending official-looking messages that ask you to click on a link in the email. The site – which secretly does not belong to the company in question – then asks you to enter login details or other sensitive information. Make sure you do not fall prey to these practices by applying the  
SAFE rule: an acronym that can help you check incoming messages for legitimacy.

The SAFE rule

S – Writing style

Always read messages you receive carefully. Do you see any strange spelling mistakes? Oddly constructed sentences? Trust your gut: if there are a lot of mistakes or the message is written strangely, you are probably dealing with a phishing email.

A – Sender

Always double-check where the email came from. Not just the name on it, but the actual email address. Phishing emails often come from random email addresses, such as nhrpa1rth@t0ws.com. And even if the email address looks legitimate, it pays to double-check. For example, we send emails from addresses that end with @master-solutions.nl. Now copy-paste that into a word processor and change the font. See? One of those L’s is actually a capital i. Be aware that cybercriminals use these kinds of tactics to trick you.

F – Fake Link

If you have any doubts about the legitimacy of a message,  never  open an attachment or link in the message. You can easily check links by hovering over them and looking at the bottom left of the screen. There you will see the address the link will take you to. If the link takes you to a website you don’t know or that isn’t officially from a company (Google is your friend here!), don’t click on it.

E – ePrivacy

Remember: Legitimate, trusted companies will  never  directly ask you for personal or login information. So if you receive a message asking you to give up this information, you are almost certainly dealing with a phishing attempt.

Being aware of techniques to steal your (personal) information is one of the most important skills you can have, because most hacks and information leaks can be traced back to ‘Social Engineering’: abusing the human tendency to trust. Now you are at least aware of what to look out for.