One phishing site that copies your brand can steal logins from staff and customers alike. Phishing monitoring watches the internet for lookalike domains and fake pages, so they can be taken down before people land on them. Brandefense phishing monitoring does this 24/7, and this post explains why it matters.
What Is Phishing?
Phishing is one of the most common social engineering attacks. CISA describes it as using email or malicious websites to ask for personal information while posing as a trustworthy organization. MITRE ATT&CK (T1566) calls all forms of phishing electronically delivered social engineering.
The attacker poses as someone the user trusts. The goal is to make the person reveal confidential information or give the attacker a way into the organization.
Most attacks start with a malicious link. When the link is opened, it may start a malware download. Or it may show a fake login form that looks like a trusted website. The attacker then uses the stolen credentials to gain remote access.
A successful phishing attack can be costly. Attackers may use the access to make purchases or transfer funds. They may also steal an employee’s identity, raise their privileges or run a malicious payload that damages systems.
- Malicious messageThe attacker sends the recipient a malicious link by email.Technique T1566 (MITRE ATT&CK, opens in a new tab)
- Link is openedThe link may start a malware download or show a fake login form.
- Credentials enteredThe user enters credentials on the form that looks trusted.
- Access gainedThe attacker uses the stolen credentials to gain remote access.
What Is Phishing Monitoring?
Phishing monitoring is a different layer from email filtering. Email security and anti-phishing software guard your inboxes and browsers. They block a message or a link when it arrives or is clicked.
Phishing monitoring works on the open internet instead. It finds the fake domains and sites that phishing emails link to, and gets them removed. This also protects your customers, who sit outside your email filters.
Why Does Phishing Monitoring Matter?
Copying a legitimate site onto a fake domain, then spreading that link by email, is one of the most common types of phishing. Email filters only see the messages that reach your own staff. They cannot see the same fake site when it is sent to your customers or partners.
Phishing monitoring looks for the fake site itself. It watches for lookalike domains, such as typosquats and names with words like “login” or “secure”. It can catch them at registration, certificate issuance or DNS activation, often before the page goes live.
The number of new domains is far too high to check by hand. Brandefense watches more than 2.4 million new domains a day. AI does the detection work, and analysts verify critical findings.
Finding the site is only half the job. A fake domain stays dangerous until it is removed. A takedown asks the registrar or host to suspend it. The time this takes depends on the registrar or host.
Email rules such as DMARC help too, but they solve a different problem. DMARC helps stop others from sending mail as your own domain. It does not find a different domain that only looks like yours.
- Check the linkHover over it and see if it matches the text shown. Avoid shortened URLs.
- Do not open unexpected attachmentsAn unsolicited attachment is a common way to deliver malware.
- Report itTell your organization’s network administrators if you were caught out.
Staff habits still matter. Our guide on how to detect phishing emails lists the warning signs to look for.
How Does Brandefense Help Against Phishing Sites?
Brandefense Digital Risk Protection protects your brand, customers and executives against phishing, impersonation and fraud. Its phishing monitoring module finds lookalike domains and fake pages that copy your brand. It checks more than 35 ways to vary your domain name, such as swapped letters and keys that sit next to each other.
When a fake site is confirmed, Brandefense contacts the registrars and hosts and collects the evidence itself. You can also export the evidence to pursue the case yourself.
To see how this works for your brand, request a demo.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is phishing monitoring?
It is a service that watches the internet for lookalike domains and fake sites that copy your brand, so they can be taken down. It works outside your inboxes, unlike email filtering.
What is phishing?
CISA says phishing attacks use email or malicious websites to ask for personal information while posing as a trustworthy organization. MITRE ATT&CK calls all forms of phishing electronically delivered social engineering.
Why is phishing monitoring needed?
Email filters only protect your own inboxes, while a fake site can also reach customers and partners. Monitoring finds the site itself, often before the page goes live, so a takedown can start early.
How can employees spot a phishing email?
CISA advises hovering over links to see if they match the text, avoiding shortened URLs and not opening unexpected attachments.
What should I do after a phishing attack?
CISA advises reporting it to your organization's network administrators, and contacting your financial institution if accounts are affected.
