Hybrid Phishing Attacks Using Callback Method Increase by 625% Since Q1 2021

Phishing attacks have been commonplace for decades, but in spite of the fact that this is the case malicious actors have managed to continue updating them to make them difficult to mitigate. A new report by Agari just revealed a massive 625% increase in a specific type of phishing attack, namely one that involves social engineering and callbacks with all things having been considered and taken into account.

According to this report, the total number of phishing attacks have only increased by 6% in the same time period. With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that hybrid phishing attacks known as “vishing” have seen a much more astonishing increase of about 625%. These attacks are usually initiated with an email, after which the victim receives a voice call that tries to use social engineering to get them to click on the link and put in their log-in details because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up allowing them to steal said information.

Scammers present a problem with an invoice or some other kind of payment in the phishing email, and they provide a number for victims to get in touch with an ostensible customer service representative who can provide them with some assistance. Receiving the call allows malicious actors to obtain backdoor access to devices, so this is clearly a type of phishing attack that can do tremendous harm if steps are not taken to reduce its presence in various sectors.

Hybrid phishing attacks now comprise nearly 1 out of every 4 threats that are reported, or 24.6% to be precise. The staggering growth rate of these attacks indicates that malicious actors are doubling down on them, and we might see an even more dangerous increase in the coming year. These types of phishing attacks were first noted in March of 2021, and in the 15 or so months since they were first noticed they have been increasing far more than regular phishing attacks and other types of cyber attacks online.

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by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World

Google Collaborated With A Notable Researcher To Discuss The Attitudes That Different Age Groups Hold Towards Online Misinformation

Google partnered up with a researcher from MediaWise to gauge how people establish trust across the unruly beast that is the internet.

Alex Mahadevan is more than just a mere researcher: the man is currently MediaWise’s director, which puts him in a prime position to take apart and discuss our current online behaviors and predilections. MediaWise, which is a further off-shoot of the Poynter Institute journalistic school, is a non-profit organization that aims to spread as much awareness about online safety as possible. The organization’s work caters to age groups of all sorts because no one is unexposed to the internet nowadays. Online corners of the world in turn have molded themselves to provide as much damage and harm as possible to say, individual groups. The likes of cyberbullies, literal pedophiles, scammers, phishers, and all other sorts of cybercriminals major or minor (in both stature and criminal status) have managed to populate the online world. It’s important to not only keep a safe eye out but to effectively report and out such instances of illicit or dangerous behavior. MediaWise and groups like it fight the good fight by raising awareness in the form of lectures, campaigns, and the provision of online resources.

At any rate, Google’s work with Mahadevan is mostly derived from research that the man himself conducted with YouGov over online attitudes towards trust and its defined parameters. As Mahadevan himself stresses in his interview with the tech giant, misinformation spreads across the internet like an especially contagious and long-lasting virus (that I’m sure no real-life examples exist of). The YouGov study, which was a survey conducted amongst a whopping 8,500 individuals across all age groups, attempted to map out how different backgrounds respond to similar online situations.

The research’s geographical borders were ultimately limited to respondents from the USA, Brazil, the UK, Germany, India, Nepal, and Japan. The results ultimately stated that a worrying 62% of the population encountered misinformation on a near-daily basis. Roughly 50% of the population from ages 18 to 57 shared the concern that such information could impact their relatives adversely. The research also helps identify that ultimately gen X, millennials, and gen Z are much more confident in their ability to identify misinformation than either baby boomers or the silent generation. Then again, the latter two have had much more limited exposure to online life.

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by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

A Study Details The Importance Of Customer Service, With Ineffectual Examples Leading To Customers Moving Elsewhere

A new study reveals that customers are incredibly unlikely to recruit further services from a brand if they’ve faced even a singular bad experience in the past.

Sure, everyone likes to talk about how fickle customers are, but then again so are brands. I suppose it all depends on perspective: if we talk about a small business, then a customer’s impatience can be very trying; if we’re referring to a massive conglomerate, then such annoyances are more than justified. The former usually involves a small team of self-made individuals where occasional human error is more than likely to occur. The latter involves a brand that’s based its entire business model upon exploiting the masses, so the grievances are more than acceptable. I’d further ask everyone to at least not be aggressive or untoward with regards to the actual frontline retail workers, but I’m positive these words will go unheeded by at least a quarter of the individuals who read this.

The study was conducted by Invoca, a conversation intelligence company that heavily relies on AI to build conversation models that its clientele can then rely upon. They recently conducted a study on the importance of customer service during a consumer’s interaction with a brand. A total of eight different industries were taken into the mix, and five hundred individuals were asked to take part in a survey, serving as the sample population. Their answers were then compiled into the study set before us; now, let’s delve into the results and see what we can glean.

So, right off the bat, the importance of good customer service is underlined by just how quickly consumers abandon a brand if it’s not provided well enough. 76% of the sample population stated that they would discontinue a vendor’s services if even a single bad experience was encountered. This puts the onus on customer service reps to control a customer’s experience as much as possible, either ensuring that effective service is provided or putting out fires whenever problems arise. Bad experiences for the most part involve rude agents (59%), long hold times (58%), or customer service reps transferring consumers amongst different lines too much (58%). Pretty sure I know at least four major banks that are guilty of that last one.

A lot of customer service has moved towards either online platforms or the phone; with 68% of the sample population stating that they make a phone call at some point in the purchasing process. 85% of the current population also expects businesses to keep some record of past interaction, such as recalling if an individual has called before and remembering certain details of a prior transaction.

Read next: People have started cutting down on expenses they don’t need and you might be surprised to learn that it isn’t because of inflation
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

Innovation At Peak For TikTok As App Launches Its New In-App Text-To-Image AI Generator

TikTok certainly appears to be on a roll when it comes down to innovation. The famous short video format platform has recently rolled out its new text-to-image AI generator inside the app.

The feature is designed to enable users to add respective prompts by typing them in. And in return, they’ll get an image that could be applied in the background for their own video content.

This particular effect is known as the famous AI Greenscreen, which TikTok says could be easily accessed through the camera screen. And we’ve got confirmation on the news thanks to the media outlet The Verge which was the first to report the new finding.

The new filter’s launch arrives at a time when such features are growing in trend across various platforms, turning into one of the most sought-after trends today. This is true after we saw the DALL-E-2 getting rolled out by OpenAI.

We’d also like to mention how the pictures produced by the new feature from TikTok are very basic at first glance. And that’s especially true when you look at the other images coming out from other leading models like Google’s Imagen.

Moreover, TikTok’s model is definitely one of the forces to be reckoned with as it makes abstract images. On the other hand, the other more famous generators are able to make photorealistic imagery in the most beautiful manner.

It’s actually very possible that this was an intentional move by the famous app, making sure its version of the model sticks to the platform’s policies and community guidelines. This is especially true when it comes down to violence and nude images, that go strictly against the guidelines.

Also, we believe that had the model been as picture-perfect as the rest, well, it could well be utilized for incorrect reasons like making disturbing content. Therefore, that’s why the model we’re seeing getting launched by TikTok is done to avoid such problems.

After enabling the new effect, TikTok offers users a wide array of prompts. For instance, you can find serene views of people snorkeling in the ocean or a stellar display of the rainbow volcano. And then there are some real gems out there like hidden villages amid beautiful greenery.

The whole idea behind the prompts is to make users visualize how diligently focused the platform is to bring forward striking abstract imagery. And if you want, you can play around to produce unique content that’s absolutely beautiful.

In cases where users’ prompts do happen to include wording that is offensive and goes against the app’s policies, well, you may get abstract images that feature the theme and colors but definitely something vague. This is to make sure the guidelines of censorship aren’t missed out.

For now, we know that such filters are only coming forward for a selected few trends on the app. There is one where users can add names to the model to get a glimpse of what their esthetics appears like.

Meanwhile, the app is also following another similar trend where users plug in their birthdays while others are intrigued to see what is produced when they include specific parts of their body into the model.

As you can see, the world is definitely your playground in terms of what you can use the app to do. This model is about creativity and abstract visualization at the most basic level. Remember, there are limitations because access is given to millions out there.

But we feel it’s a unique and innovative start, especially in terms of giving users the best background for their content.

Read next: New Social Media Survey Says American Teens Are Addicted To YouTube As TikTok Trails Behind
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Facebook And Instagram Users Can Now Schedule All Reels Through Meta’s Creator Studio App

Meta is giving all of its users the chance to schedule their reels through its Creator Studio application. This is valid for both the Facebook and Instagram platforms, the company mentioned.

Reel scheduling through Meta’s Creator Studio gives users the chance to add a little more capacity to include their short clips at a time that they find most suitable to them. This way, they can maximize the response generated from their intended audience.

As can be seen in the clip put out by Meta recently, Reels can be scheduled for all users with the Creator Studio. This combined with different tools used for formatting really does go a long way in making content customized.

Through a simple click of a button, users get the chance to schedule posts directly from their desktop. How cool is that?

We’ve seen the company roll out the scheduling of Reels for its Instagram app for quite some time now, like the past few months via the Creator Studio. Therefore, some users would already be having access to the feature. However, the rollout now is for all.

On the other hand, we just got a glimpse of Meta launching a new tool for video edits through the app. The feature is designed to assist users in cutting out longer video clips so they can be converted into a Reel. Therefore, as you can see, Meta’s goal of promoting short-form video content is definitely taking center stage.

We find both of these features to be handy tools and a great strategy employed to have short-form content up and running against similar posts or updates through the app.

Meta also recently went public with the announcement of their Reels API. The tool is designed to help users schedule all of their Reels using third-party tools for the future too. And don’t forget, we also have Meta’s own Reels scheduling tool which is going to be launched for Instagram very soon.

This way, users are going to get a wide variety of options in terms of how they wish to align their Reels. The trend of short-form videos is definitely not slowing down so we think this is surely going to be the new norm.

Hence, we recommend you get right to it and try out these tools as well as other options along the way.

For more updates on the tools, do check out Meta’s Creator Studio.

Read next: Meta Releases New Survey That Highlights The Growing Trend Of Business Messaging

by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Snapchat+ Treats Premium Users With New Features As App Hits 1 Million Subscriber Mark

If you happen to be a Snapchat+ user then we’ve got some great news for you. The app is treating its premium subscribers to some new additional features after the platform struck the one million subscriber mark.

The news was confirmed thanks to a blog post released this week. And that’s when the company revealed a new plan called the ‘Summer Drop’ that is solely exclusive to premium users only.

So, what’s in store? Well, we were just as curious as you and that’s when he found out that the latest addition includes highlighted story replies for high-profile members. This is applied to celebs and content creators, whom the app designates as its Snap Stars.

The whole idea is to help distinguish replies added by subscribers from those produced by non-subscribers. But wait, that’s just the start.

Snapchat+ also plans on giving its members features that are more aligned with customized visuals. For instance, you can now alter the icon seen on the home screen of the Snap app. Therefore, those irritated by the bright yellow would surely love this amazing new feature.

At the same time, users will get the chance to personalize the types of emojis on display for their contacts, after the immediate opening of the snap. Therefore, pals of those who are non-subscribers would end up seeing outlines in red, blue, and purple. However, if your Snap friend is a subscriber, he would be seeing emojis picked out by a premium subscriber, other than the Avatar itself.

Other than that, the platform is giving it's premium users another chance to avail the most unique Bitmoji backgrounds of the bunch. As amazing as it sounds, sadly regular users aren’t offered the same.

The subscription was launched earlier this past year and is available in most parts of the world at just $3.99 for monthly plans.

Read next: Snap And GWI Conducted A Study To Determine How Snapchat’s Community Interacts With Other Social Media Platforms
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

51% of IT Companies Plan to Increase Expenditures Despite Inflationary Pressure

We are undergoing one of the worst periods of global inflation in recent memory, but in spite of the fact that this is the case the IT industry doesn’t seem to be feeling the heat. Researchers at Spiceworks Ziff Davis recently conducted a survey that revealed that 51% of IT firms plan to increase spending year on year, with just a meager 6% claiming that they intend to reduce expenses due to the economic crunch being brought about by inflation.

This data comes from the State of IT report that this firm puts out every year, and with all of that having been said and now out of the way it is important to note that this year’s edition involved a survey of around 1,400 IT industry leaders across North America and Europe. Businesses in this industry are expected to increase spending by as much as 21% on average because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up helping them acquire new equipment and train their staff.

A major aspect of this increase in expenditure is the shift to remote work. Cyber security needs to be improved in order to make remote work viable, and that indicates that IT is one of the most inflation resistant industries out there in the present era.

Last year, only about 33% of firms planned to increase spending, and this has gone up to 53% for 2022 and 51% in 2023. That seems to suggest that IT companies have seen returns on their investments, and they would be willing to keep funneling more money into their IT budgets with all things having been considered and taken into account.

Additionally, fewer companies are planning to reduce their IT budgets. In 2022, it is estimated that 7% of IT companies want to decrease expenses, and this is going to fall to just 6% by next year. An increasing proportion of IT companies are also using an unchanged budget, so they might be reaching some kind of an equilibrium that facilitates ideal growth in the current economic scenario.

Read next: People have started cutting down on expenses they don’t need and you might be surprised to learn that it isn’t because of inflation
by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World