The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has simplified its cyber scam-reporting with a new add-in for Outlook on Microsoft 365 which makes it even easier to flag phishing emails to its Suspicious Email Reporting Service (SERS).
Launched in April of last year, SERS allows users to report email scams by forwarding them to report@phishing.gov.uk. Within the last 16 months, it has received over 6.5 million reports from the public resulting in the removal of 97,000 online scams, the NCSC said.
However, the organisation has said that this isn’t enough, with NCSC technical director Dr Ian Levy saying that the new tool will make it easier for businesses to “further help combat cyber crime”.
How to reduce the risk of phishing and ransomware NCSC taps security startups to help defend the UK from cyber threats COVID-related phishing fuels a 15-fold increase in NCSC takedowns
Designed as a simple button, it allows staff to report a suspicious-looking email with just one click, saving the time that it takes to find the SERS email address and forward the message. The more automated approach aims to make reporting easier and faster, allowing users to protect the security of the business without compromising on time and productivity.
“As more people report more dodgy stuff to us, the safer everyone gets,” said Levy. “The pandemic has shown the cyber criminals will stop at nothing to attack and defraud citizens and businesses. But our Suspicious Email Reporting Service has also shown that the British public can help us fight back against this scourge."
RELATED RESOURCE
Prevent fraud and phishing attacks with DMARC
How to use domain-based message authentication, reporting, and conformance for email security
SMBs have been especially vulnerable to hackers, with almost a third of cyber attacks now involving a small business. According to Federation of Small Businesses national chair Mike Cherry, innovations such as the simplified reporting tool “are crucial to calling time on business crime”.
“Small achievable steps will go a long way to protect thousands of small firms from cyber attacks. Every year, there are almost four million cases of cyber attacks against small businesses in the UK, and more than 50 per cent of these come from phishing,” he said, adding that “these systems not only help prevent disruption to small firms today but will become increasingly important to help safeguard small businesses for the future”.
Organisations interested in equipping their staff with the Microsoft 365 tool can go to the Microsoft AppSource portal and search for the Report Phishing add-in, click the “Get it now” button, and follow the instructions to complete the installation.
-
AI is helping bad bots take over the internetNews Automated bot traffic has surpassed human activity for the first time in a decade, according to Imperva
-
Two years on from its Series B round, Hack the Box is targeting further growthNews Hack the Box has grown significantly in the last two years, and it shows no signs of slowing down
-
How the channel can simplify cybersecurity to build trust and agility for SMBsIndustry Insights There's an opportunity for the channel to move from tech resellers to trusted advisors on security and help alleviate the security burden on SMBs
-
Why ransomware attacks happen to small businesses – and how to stop themIn-depth With a surge in small business ransomware attacks, it's critical to know what makes your organization a target and what defensive measures you can take
-
Four measures SMBs can take to avoid common security pitfallsIn-depth Security can be challenging for SMBs, but it’s possible to make yourself more resilient to reduce the impact of cyber attacks
-
C-suites consider quantum a serious threat and "amazing" deepfake attacks are just 'months away'News Deepfake technology has matured at a rapid rate, and video scams are likely to be a on par with the more convincing voice-only campaigns very soon, one expert says
-
Anonymous Sudan: Who are the hackers behind Microsoft’s cloud outages?News The highly aggressive ‘hacktivist’ group is thought to have links to the pro-Russian Killnet hacker collective
-
ASUS, Cisco, Netgear devices exploited in ongoing Chinese hacking campaignNews Critical national infrastructure is the target of sustained attempts from state-sponsored hackers, according to Five Eyes advisories
-
Off-the-shelf ransomware is spurring a new era in the Ukraine warNews Experts agreed Russian forces could be overwhelmed, forced to use less sophisticated tools to meet the regime's demands
-
NCSC: “New class” of Russian cyber attackers seek to destroy critical infrastructureNews The cyber threat has been raised due to the heightened risk of ideologically driven cyber attacks from Russia-aligned adversaries
