Organized crime is big business, so it’s no surprise that phishers have developed their own sets of best practices.
It’s easier to get an unwitting victim to click a URL when that URL is short. ZDnet has a fascinating article that describes how phishers are moving towards shorter URLs in their email messages and on their web pages.
Cnet posted an article in April 2006 with more clues about creating an effective phishing campaign. There are some other good articles about this study at securityfocus.com site and the Register.
However, as I suggested to Larry Rowland’s IS 6000 students last week, it’s a good idea for master’s students to find and read at least one peer-reviewed academic article a week. Why Phishing Works is a good example of such an article.
