Phishers fingered

WASHINGTON, DC – Both the industry and regulators are increasing their efforts to stamp out the increasing problem of phishing – a term used to describe various techniques that fraudsters use to acquire sensitive information, such as account data, over the internet.

Regulators and law enforcement agencies are alarmed by the speed of the increase. At the end of September, for example, the US Securities and Exchange Commission notified broker Smith Barney that it was the subject of repeated phishing attacks. An email alerted customers of an ‘upgrade’ to the firm’s software, then directed them to the firm’s actual website. There, a pop-up box from the fraudsters requests automated teller information.

This journalist alone has received two separate emails over