PHISHING site

You selected the PHISHING website. Know how you can tell?

Distinguishing between a fake site and a legitimate site can be difficult. A phishing site can impersonate all aspects of a website, tricking consumers into giving away personal data such as log-in and credit card details. However, there are a few ways to spot the fraud:

• Pay close attention to the URL
• Look for the green address bar

If the URL isn't exactly right, then the site isn’t right either. Consumers should pay attention to the spelling of the URL and any add-ons to the end of the URL to make sure that the site is authentic.

Another more conspicuous way to tell if a site is authentic is to look for the green address bar that is associated with an Extended Validation SSL certificate. Sites that have deployed an EV SSL certificate have passed a rigorous validation by a third-party called a Certification Authority (CA). The CA checks the existence and legitimacy of the entity prior to issuing the EV SSL. The rigorous checks help ensure that the green address bar is only available to legitimate e-commerce merchants.

Why the Green standard?

Today, anyone with $15 in their pocket can get an SSL certificate for their website and display a gold padlock. Consumers need to verify more than just a gold padlock if they want to be sure that their transactions are going to be safe. They need to know that you (the e-merchant) are who you say you are. EV SSL certificates are one additional way for you to verify the business’ identity and help to prevent phishing attacks.

Combat against phishing. Learn more about EV SSL.