A lot of companies use cybersecurity training to prevent phishing attacks. A UC San Diego study says they should find a better way to protect their digital assets.
Clicking the link hypothetically confirms to the spammer that yours is a valid and monitored email address, and that you’re a sucker suitable for more targeted phishing.
Of course, it seems like every random user will also happily type their password into any text box that asks for it, too.
Unless the email client is blocking external images, a tracking pixel in the email would be enough to see that the email was rendered, and that the address is valid. The trainings specifically instruct you to review the contents of the email and check the email headers before clicking links, so that alone would confirm to a spammer that the email is valid.
Clicking the link hypothetically confirms to the spammer that yours is a valid and monitored email address, and that you’re a sucker suitable for more targeted phishing.
Of course, it seems like every random user will also happily type their password into any text box that asks for it, too.
Unless the email client is blocking external images, a tracking pixel in the email would be enough to see that the email was rendered, and that the address is valid. The trainings specifically instruct you to review the contents of the email and check the email headers before clicking links, so that alone would confirm to a spammer that the email is valid.