CircleID

The MarkMonitor Fraud Intelligence Report for the second quarter of 2011 is now available. The findings are:

Phishing Attacks Declined Slightly from Previous Quarter – Phish attack volume declined 3% from the previous quarter to 97,241 attacks.

Organizations Targeted also Declined Slightly – The number of targeted organizations also decreased 3% from the first quarter to 498.

Attacks per Organization Unchanged – Attacks per organization volume was unchanged from Q1 2011 at 195.

Retail Sector Grew to Become Popular Phishing Sector – Retail/Service sector phish increased 413% to 10,159 attacks, accounting for over 10% of total phish in the second quarter. The Financial sector continued to account for 47% of phish with 45,473 attacks, while the Payment Services sector accounted for 25% with 23,923 attacks.

Gaming, Social Networking, and Auction Sectors All Showed Declines – Gaming sector phish declined 22% from the previous quarter to 5,330 attacks. Social Networking sector phish decreased 25% to 3,595 attacks. Auction sector phish dropped 41% to 3,177 attacks.

Phishing Attacks Targeting Chinese Brands Prove Very Popular – Attacks targeting Chinese brands accounted for 10% of phishing last quarter, making China the third most popular country whose brands are targeted by phishing. American brands accounted for 58% of phishing attacks, and British brands saw 15% of phishing attacks. Other important countries whose brands were targeted include Spain, Canada, Brazil, India, and Italy.

Phishing Attacks Hosted in Hong Kong are Most Popular after North American Countries – In the second quarter, phish hosted in Hong Kong accounted for 5% of phish­ing attacks, while the US accounted for 52% and Canada accounted for 6%. Other important countries hosting phish attacks include the UK, Chile, Germany, France, Singapore, Russia, China, and Brazil.

Phish Attacks by Industry Sectors, Q2 2011 – The Financial sector continued to account for 47% of phish attacks in the second quarter of 2011, while the Payment Services sector accounted for 25%. The Retail/Service sector increased to over 10% of total phish last quarter. Online Gaming, Social Networking, and Auctions remained important sectors accounting for 3-6% of total phish attacks. (Source: MarkMonitor)

For more detail, download the full report here [PDF]:
MarkMonitor Fraud Intelligence Report, Q2 2011

About MarkMonitor

MarkMonitor, the global leader in enterprise brand protection, offers comprehensive solutions and services that safeguard brands, reputations and revenue from online risks. With end-to-end solutions that address the growing threats of online fraud, brand abuse and unauthorized channels, MarkMonitor enables a secure Internet for businesses and their customers. (Learn More)

Related topics: Cybercrime, Cybersquatting, Domain Names, Malware, Security, Spam