A recent report from Check Point Research has unveiled a startling statistic: nearly half of all global phishing attacks involve impersonation of the Microsoft-owned business platform, LinkedIn.
Scammers often exploit LinkedIn by targeting individuals seeking new job opportunities or career changes. While emails with subject lines like "You have 1 new invitation" or "Your profile has been viewed by 63 people" may appear genuine, it's essential to verify the sender's email address to confirm it's truly from LinkedIn. These impersonators craft emails that closely mimic legitimate ones, including links to fake LinkedIn pages designed to steal your information as soon as you enter it.
Another tactic cybercriminals use involves creating fake profiles to message users about job opportunities. Once they've gained your trust, they might request a small payment to process your application—money you'll never see again—or direct you to a form that is actually a phishing link in disguise.
LinkedIn is aware of this issue and is actively working on enhancing its security features to protect users. Here are three security measures currently in place:
- Suspicious Message Warnings - LinkedIn's technology can identify messages from individuals trying to move conversations off the platform or making potentially inappropriate comments, and it will alert you with a warning notification.
- Profile Verification - This feature enables you to confirm the authenticity of your page. By providing an additional form of identification, you can obtain a verification badge on your profile. This badge assures viewers that you are who you claim to be. This is particularly valuable because scammers frequently seek new targets and often have pages that are quickly shut down, making it unlikely for them to keep their information current.
- Profile Information - This feature enables you to view detailed information about a person's profile, aiding you in deciding whether to respond to a message, accept a connection request, trust an offer, and more. To access this, navigate to your profile, click on "More," and choose "About this profile" from the drop-down menu. Here, you'll find information such as:
- When the profile was created
- When the profile was last updated.
- Whether the member has verified a phone number.
- Whether the member has a work e-mail associated with their account.
- AI-Generated Profile Picture Detection - Scammers are leveraging AI to create realistic profile pictures of non-existent individuals, which they use to set up fraudulent profiles aimed at deceiving users. Alarmingly, LinkedIn's research revealed that most users struggle to visually differentiate between genuine faces and these AI-generated ones. Consequently, LinkedIn has collaborated with academic institutions to develop and implement sophisticated detection tools. These features enable LinkedIn to identify and eliminate AI-generated profile pictures, effectively shutting down fake profiles before they can cause any harm.
Do you rely on LinkedIn to search for jobs, hire employees, or attract clients? While it's an excellent tool for business networking, maintaining security is crucial. LinkedIn's built-in features provide an initial layer of protection, but they are not foolproof. If an individual within your organization were to fall for a scam and click on a malicious link, would your internal security measures be robust enough to safeguard your network?
We can help you find out. We'll do a FREE consult to help you determine if your network is vulnerable to any type of attack. To book yours, call us at 410-535-4332
