Hacking Techniques: Phishing Basics

Phishing is another way to hack websites and gain personal data, the first one  the use of Keyloggers,  has been expained in an earlier post.
Phishing, as defined by Wikipedia is the criminally fraudulent process of attempting to acquire sensitive information such as usernames, passwords and credit card details by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication.
In simple terms, a phisher will create an exact duplicate of an original site and make victims think that it is the original one.The victims enter their vital details like credit card numbers, passwords etc which are then used by the phisher.
Very often, the victims are sent emails telling them to update their details of a website with a link to the fake website designed by the hacker which is convincing enough to be the original the users.The reasons given in the emails generally speak of database maintenance, upgradation of the site etc.
Phishers usually target sites having online payment methods and commercial websites like banks where transactions are involved. Phishing requires both extreme skill and social engineering because to create a website exactly like the genuine website is no mean task.

Disclaimer

The aim of writing this blog is not to encourage hacking or any other illegal activity of this sort. It is only to make you aware of the different techniques and malpractices(like Hacking, Phishing etc) which might be used to target or victimise genuine users. ' Better safe than sorry ' goes the saying , but it wont be incorrect to say that ' better secure than sorry', in the recent times. Also, suggestions from visitors will be appreciated, so dont forget to comment and give feedback. Thankx.......