phishing

noun

phish·​ing ˈfi-shiŋ 

: the practice of tricking Internet users (as through the use of deceptive email messages or websites) into revealing personal or confidential information which can then be used illicitly

The most common form … is called phishing, a one-two punch using both email and Web browsing to trick people into typing confidential information into Web sites that look like the sites of real companies, especially financial institutions.

—Walter S. Mossberg

Social engineering tactics, such as phishing schemes, are often used by attackers to obtain valid credentials or other personal information.

—Jack Morse

see also spear phishing compare smishing

Did you know?

Phishing is one of the many new computer-related terms that have found their way into the general lexicon over the past decade or so. Its "ph" spelling is influenced by an earlier word for an illicit act: "phreaking." Phreaking involves fraudulently using an electronic device to avoid paying for telephone calls, and its name is suspected of being a shortening of "phone freak." A common phishing scam involves sending emails that appear to come from banks requesting recipients to verify their accounts by typing personal details, such as credit card information, into a website that has been disguised to look like the real thing. Such scams can be thought of as "fishing" for naive recipients.

Examples of phishing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Large language models can help write more persuasive phishing emails, for example. —Rachyl Jones, Fortune, 9 Apr. 2024

Each of the many phishing centers answers to Derek Danforth (Josh Hutcherson), a douchey 28-year-old rich-kid cokehead who tools around his office on a skateboard in extraordinarily ugly outfits (that puke-green suit!) and bad highlights. —David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Jan. 2024

Statham stars as Adam Clay, a former operative who sets out to exact revenge after his friend falls for a ruinous phishing scam and dies by suicide. —Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 10 Jan. 2024

Train users to report suspicious messages and recognize phishing attacks. —David Balaban, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024

When reached by Gizmodo, Apple declined to comment on the phishing attacks, instead directing Gizmodo to one of its support articles on recognizing phishing attacks. —Jody Serrano / Gizmodo, Quartz, 27 Mar. 2024

According to a Microsoft report, Emerald Sleet used LLMs to research think tanks and experts on North Korea, and to make content for spear phishing campaigns. —Britney Nguyen, Quartz, 13 Mar. 2024

Forty-three percent said advanced phishing attacks are the top threat heading into 2024 as schemes become increasingly targeted. —Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2023

Cybersecurity company Proofpoint uses similar technology to help monitor cyber risks, such as incoming phishing scams or if an employee is downloading and sending sensitive work data to their personal email account. —Samantha Murphy Kelly, CNN, 4 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

respelling of fishing, with ph- probably after phreaking

First Known Use

1996, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing phishing

• SMS phishing
• spear phishing

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

Kids Definition

phishing

noun

phish·​ing ˈfish-iŋ 

: a scam by which an e-mail user is fooled into revealing personal information

phisher

-ər 

noun

Legal Definition

phishing

noun

phish·​ing ˈfi-shiŋ 

: a fraudulent operation by which an e-mail user is duped into revealing personal or confidential information which can be used for illicit purposes (as identity theft)

Etymology

alteration of fishing (probably influenced by phreaking illegal access to a phone system)