NCSC catches 10 million phishes

The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has received more than 10.5 million suspicious emails through its Suspicious Email Reporting Service (SERS) and has so far taken down 76,000 online scams relating to the NHS, online deliveries, cryptocurrencies and more.

The campaign draws on the NCSC’s own Cyber Aware advice, recommending simple steps that anyone can take, such as setting passwords made up of three random words, a technique that it first started advocating some time ago.

NCSC CEO Lindy Cameron said, “The British public’s response to our Suspicious Email Reporting Service has been incredible and led to the removal of thousands of online scams. But there is even more we can do and by following our Cyber Aware steps to secure online accounts – starting with email – people will dramatically reduce risks including financial losses and personal data breaches.

Last year saw a 161% increase in unauthorised access to personal information offences – including hacking. Opportunistic criminals have taken advantage of more people using digital devices than ever before with scams that can lead to accounts being hacked.

In response, a major government campaign has been launched across broadcast, online and almost 2,000 billboard adverts to publicise actionable advice on defending digital assets.

The eye-catching campaign recommends that people and small businesses use passwords made up of three random words and enable 2-step verification (2SV). This will help keep out anyone who should not have access to an account, by requiring a second step after the password is entered, such as a code texted to the account holder's phone.