{"id":8458,"date":"2017-02-09T14:24:43","date_gmt":"2017-02-09T22:24:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.hellotech.com\/?p=8458"},"modified":"2021-06-13T13:03:58","modified_gmt":"2021-06-13T20:03:58","slug":"apple-imessage-phishing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hellotech.com\/blog\/apple-imessage-phishing","title":{"rendered":"Avoid the Recent Rise of “Apple iMessage” Phishing Attempts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As a rule of thumb, take everything you read online with a grain of salt\u2015including every account security email from Apple. If you\u2019re not too careful, you could be serving your Apple account right into a phisher\u2019s hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Remember that any cyber criminal would love to get their hands on your account info, especially your Apple ID. Your Apple ID, after all, is a link to all your Apple devices as well as access to your passwords, purchased contents, and even credit card information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So if you recently got an email on your iPhone from Apple iMessages<\/em> saying your username and password had been used to suspiciously log into an iPhone 6… tread carefully. It could very well be a bait to lure you into giving away your Apple ID or clicking on malicious links.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Telltale Signs of Phishing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019re probably no stranger to phishing scams<\/a><\/u>. In fact, you probably received an email or two from supposedly legitimate organizations\/contacts\/companies trying to procure log-in info from you. Although there are several ways by which you can receive such messages, your email and iMessage are where you typically find them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How can you determine if an Apple email is legit or not? To the untrained eye, it can be difficult to tell an official one apart from those made for phishing. Keep in mind that online crooks have spent years mimicking official Apple emails to a point where you can\u2019t always trust messages simply because they\u2019re branded with Apple logos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Look for other clues, instead. For instance, be wary of an email asking you to reset your password even when you haven\u2019t recently prompted Apple to do so. Raise another red flag if the email asks you to login from a link.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Try hovering your cursor over links on the email. This should reveal their real destination so you know where you\u2019ll be redirected when you click on them. The links should have \u201capple.com<\/strong>\u201d in them or any official domain you\u2019ve signed up with. Otherwise, don\u2019t let your guard down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More importantly, examine the email headers and see where it was sent from. Check whether the return address says it\u2019s from Apple or any of its related services. See if the sender is from Apple, too, by tapping the sender\u2019s name in the message header. The next screen will show you the sender\u2019s actual address. Get ready to take the necessary action in case the sender isn\u2019t from Apple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Protect Yourself vs. Phishers and Email Scammers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Got enough evidence that the Apple iMessage<\/em> email you received came from suspicious folks? In that case, let Apple know. Forward the message to reportphishing@apple.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From there, check with your mail provider on how you can create a filter to keep you from receiving any future emails from the suspected online scammer. Afterward, get rid of the phishing emails you have received.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reclaiming a Hacked Apple ID<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s say you clicked on any link on those suspected phishing emails. Theoretically, your account should be safe as long as you didn\u2019t input any Apple credentials on dubious websites. If you did and you suddenly lose access to your account, try regaining control of your Apple ID immediately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For starters, sign into your Apple ID account page<\/a>. In case you\u2019re shown a message that the account is locked or you can\u2019t sign in, go to iforgot.apple.com<\/a>. Once you\u2019re in there, you can reset or unlock your account. If you still can\u2019t sign in, get in touch with Apple Support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We encourage you to set up two-factor authentication<\/a> or two-step verification<\/a> for your Apple ID from here on. Do this after you have updated and reviewed the personal and security info in your account. Those two measures should prevent anyone from accessing your account, even if they got a hold of your password.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To know more about how to deal with suspicious emails, check out Apple\u2019s tips on dealing with phishing<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While no phishing ploys can readily pass the scrutiny of an iOS power user, they may easily fool newbie Mac-heads. And if you\u2019re just moving from PC to Mac<\/a>, the tips we\u2019ve shared should keep you from being fooled into biting the proverbial poisoned apple.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As a rule of thumb, take everything you read online with a grain of salt\u2015including every account security email from Apple. If you\u2019re not too careful, you could be serving your Apple account right into a phisher\u2019s hands. Remember that any cyber criminal would love to get their hands on your account info, especially your Apple ID. Your Apple ID, after all, is a link to all your Apple devices as well as access to your passwords, purchased contents, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8522,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17587,17593],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8458","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-staying-safe"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nAvoid the Recent Rise of "Apple iMessage" Phishing Attempts<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A new phishing attack has been spreading to thousands of computers. 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