Fraud Management & Cybercrime , Social Engineering
UK Introduces Tool for Reporting Phishing
The National Cyber Security Center Also Unveils Tool for Reporting Scam WebsitesThe U.K. National Cyber Security Center has introduced a button that can be added to Microsoft Office 365 business accounts so users can directly report phishing emails to the center's Suspicious Email Reporting Service via Outlook.
It also has introduced a tool for reporting scam websites. And it's launched an effort to help configuration guidance to help IT administrators add the tool on Outlook accounts.
Once configured, employees can report potential phishing emails directly with just one click.
Microsoft has over 258 million Office 365 and 75 million Teams users globally, according to the company's third-quarter 2020 earnings call.
"Opportunistic scams during the pandemic have demonstrated how cybercriminals constantly find new ways to target us. This simple technical innovation could enable millions more to join our mission to stop scam emails from ever reaching U.K. inboxes," says Ian Levy, NCSC's technical director.
Clinton Blackburn, temporary commander of the city of London police, notes: "This new reporting tool means that employees can protect their workplace by reporting phishing emails at the click of a button - which provides the police with more information about who is behind these crimes - preventing more people from falling victim."
Scam Website Reporting Tool
The Suspicious Email Reporting Service has taken down 97,000 malicious URLs based on over 65 million reports received since April 2020, the NCSC says.
To support this effort, the NCSC has launched another tool that will make it easier for U.K. citizens to report scam websites by submitting a report about malicious links they discover.
Meanwhile, the NCSC’s Cyber Accelerator program’s successor, NCSC for Startups, has launched a program to "bring together innovative startups with NCSC technical expertise to solve some of the U.K.’s most important cyber challenges."
The program aims to:
- Shape technical challenges to highlight areas of interest and concerns;
- Wrk in collaboration and directly with startups to fine-tune their products;
- Provide technical assistance and leadership to startups to promote growth of the cyber ecosystem.
The program is designed to support a wide range of startups, ranging from those that are "developing a minimum viable product to those with established solutions looking to expand into new markets," according to NCSC’s announcement.