Understanding Spam and Phishing Emails (Basics)

Understanding Spam and Phishing Emails (Basics)

What is spam?

Spam is unsolicited or unwanted email, usually sent in bulk. Typical examples include advertising messages you never signed up for, misleading offers, or messages that don’t relate to your work with us.

Key characteristics:

  • Sent to many recipients at once.

  • Often generic or poorly targeted.

  • May contain suspicious links or attachments, but not always.

Legitimate marketing emails from companies you know can look similar to spam, but those should:

  • Come from a recognizable sender.

  • Match something you signed up for (newsletter, account notifications).

  • Offer a clear unsubscribe or preference link.

What is phishing?

Phishing is a type of fraudulent email that tries to trick you into revealing sensitive information or performing a risky action. The goal is usually to steal credentials, money, or data.

Common tactics:

  • Pretending to be a trusted organization (bank, shipping company, IT/help desk).

  • Using urgent language: “Your account will be closed,” “Payment failed,” “You must verify now.”

  • Asking you to enter passwords, payment details, or personal data on a website they control.

  • Including attachments that install malware when opened.

Basic signs of a suspicious email

Look for several of these indicators together:

  • Unexpected sender
    You didn’t expect an email from this person or company, or you don’t recognize them at all.

  • Mismatched sender address
    The display name may look familiar, but the actual email address is slightly wrong (extra characters, wrong domain, free email provider instead of a corporate domain).

  • Urgent or threatening tone
    Pressure to act quickly: “immediately,” “within 24 hours,” “final warning,” etc.

  • Requests for sensitive information
    Asks you to share passwords, multi‑factor codes, banking details, or personal identity info via email or a link.

  • Suspicious links
    Links that don’t match the text shown, or go to domains that are misspelled or unrelated to the supposed sender.

  • Unexpected attachments
    Attachments you weren’t expecting, especially compressed files (ZIP), executable files, or office documents that ask you to enable macros.

How to check a message quickly

Before you click or reply:

  1. Check the sender address carefully
    Hover over or expand the address and confirm the domain is exactly what you expect (no extra characters or different TLD).

  2. Hover over links
    Without clicking, hover to preview the URL. Make sure the domain matches the organization and isn’t misspelled or unfamiliar.

  3. Consider whether you were expecting this email
    If the message is about an account, order, or invoice you don’t recognize, treat it as suspicious.

  4. Use known channels
    If the email claims to be from a company you work with, go to their website directly (or use an app) instead of using the link in the email. Log in there and check your account.

What to do if you receive a suspicious email

  • Do not click links or open attachments until you’re sure the email is legitimate.

  • Do not reply with sensitive information.

  • If it appears related to our services, forward it to our support team or follow your internal reporting process so we can investigate.

  • If it looks like a generic spam message, you can:

    • Mark it as spam/junk in your mail client.

    • Delete it after reporting, if required by your policy.

Basic prevention tips

  • Use strong, unique passwords for each account and enable multi‑factor authentication where available.

  • Keep your operating system, browser, and email client up to date.

  • Be cautious with emails that arrive outside normal business context or show unusual urgency.

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