What is phishing?

This article will detail what phishing scams are and how you can protect yourself, and others, from them.

Phishing is a form of cybercrime in which a scammer will claim to be from a legitimate organisation and attempt to trick recipients into revealing sensitive information, such as their passwords and credit card details, or installing malware.

These emails can look convincing and often present a sense of urgency that pressure you into completing the requested action as soon as possible. However, they’re fake. Scammers send them to millions of random email addresses, hoping that some of the recipients will believe it is a genuine email and submit their details.

How to spot a phishing email

Here are a few important ways you can identify a fake email and defend yourself from phishing attacks:

  • We will never ask you to verify confidential details such as your password or payment details via email or through our website
  • Any emails from us will always state one of the following within the address:
    • @123-reg.co.uk
    • @email.123-reg.co.uk
    • @marketing.123-reg.co.uk
    • @secureserver.net
    • @services.secureserver.net
  • Scam emails often feature multiple spelling mistakes and grammatical errors

Our emails do sometimes contain secure links to your 123 Reg Control Panel. However, if you’d rather not click on any links within these emails, you can always log in to your Control Panel directly and manage your account from there.

What should I do if I receive a suspicious-looking email?

If you receive any emails claiming to be from ‘123 Reg’ that you believe are fraudulent, please forward them to ‘phishing@123-reg.co.uk’ immediately so that we can investigate them.

Once done, make sure you delete the email from your inbox and avoid making any contact with the website, telephone number or email address listed on this email.

Please note: this email address is only for reporting phishing attacks and you may not receive a response unless we require additional information from you. If you have any queries, you can contact us through your Control Panel or by calling our Support team on 0345 450 2310.

How can I protect myself against phishing emails?

You can prevent spammers from forging your address and using it to send scam emails in your name by adding an SPF record to your domain name. Doing this will also help protect your business’ reputation and reduce the risk of your email address getting blacklisted by spam filters.

For details on how to do this, please read the following Support article: How do I add an SPF record to my domain name?

Help 123 Reg stamp out internet fraud and computer crime.

Find out more information about phishing here.