Holewinski & Associates

Phishing (pronounced fishing) refers to fraudulent communications designed to deceive consumers into divulging individual, financial, or account information, including account user name and password, credit card information, and social security number. Email is most commonly used for phishing due to its low cost, greater anonymity for the sender, the capability to gain a huge target group instantly, and the potential to solicit an immediate response. However, fraudsters have used online pop-up windows, direct mail and phone calls.