Phishing websites impersonate legitimate platforms to deceive users into disclosing sensitive information like usernames and passwords.
Common tactics include URL spoofing, fake HTTPS, and social engineering to distribute malicious links via email or social media.
Risks associated with malicious links include credential theft, malware infections, and privacy breaches.
Ways to spot suspicious links involve checking domains, inspecting SSL certificates, unshortening URLs, and watching for red flags like typos or poor design.
Malicious link checkers work by comparing URLs against threat databases, sandbox analysis, and reputation scoring.
Free malicious link checkers include VirusTotal, Google Safe Browsing Transparency Report, ScyScan, Sucuri SiteCheck, and PhishTank.
Best practices for protection include using DNS filtering, enabling multi-factor authentication, conducting regular security training, and implementing real-time monitoring with SIEM tools.