Don’t Let Attackers Get Their Hooks in You

It’s that time of year when we all like to embrace the kinds of things that scare us—everything that goes bump in the night, makes our skin crawl, and turns our blood to ice. While most of the time, it is all in good fun, there’s always a hint of truth in the scary stories we tell that holds a crucial lesson. Sometimes, this lesson can even apply to our businesses.

Let’s reimagine an old standby as an example of such a story.

Todd excitedly put his car in park and waited impatiently for Krysta to join him. Finally, someone had asked to meet him at Makeout Point, and even better, he seemed to be the only one there that night. He couldn’t believe that Krysta—captain of the cheer squad—had sent that wonderful, wonderful message. Todd looked at it again:

Hey Todd, it’s Krysta. I hope I got the right number. I just wanted to tell you that I think you’re super cute and I really want to hang out more. I’ll be at Makeout Point at 9:40 tonight if you’re available. I really hope you are.

The 17-year-old smiled widely, ignoring the fact that his response was a wholly insufficient thumbs-up emoji and focusing on the fact that she had responded to that with a heart. Krysta Parker was interested in him, Todd Reardon, and wanted to meet him up here. He reread the message over and over until another car pulled into the little clearing at the top of the winding dirt road, parking a little ways away from him.

Todd stepped out of his car and, seeing Krysta wave to him, hustled over to her vehicle.

Krysta had the door unlocked for him, and he excitedly sat in the passenger seat, her eyes on him. She smiled. “Hi, Todd.”

“Hi, Krysta… um, what’s up?”

She smiled, taking his hand in hers, and they made some small talk for a while, dancing around the elephant in the SUV. The radio played softly as background music until a news bulletin interrupted it. 

Apparently, a serial killer known as the Angler had escaped from the nearby prison. The announcer continued, “While no one knows for sure exactly why he calls himself the Angler, he was known for using fishhooks to torture his victims for hours until their bodies just gave up. As such, we are recommending everyone stay in their homes and lock the doors.”

That dampened the mood in the sport utility vehicle for a while, but the two managed to refocus on other things. Eventually, Todd leaned in for a kiss.

Still smiling, Krysta half-whispered, “I’m so glad you finally asked me out somewhere.”

Todd almost didn’t hear her, but once her words registered in his head, he froze.

“What?”

Krysta, still smiling, rolled her eyes. “Do you know how long I’ve been waiting for you to ask me out? I’ve been dropping hints since, like, sophomore year.”

“But I didn’t.” Todd was utterly confused. “You asked me.”

The girl’s smile faltered. “What?”

Todd pulled out his phone and pulled up the message he had been reading over and over, showing it to Krysta. Krysta went pale.

“I, I never sent this.” Her voice shook with growing nervousness.

“You didn’t?”

“No, you sent me this.” Krysta produced her phone to show Todd. He read:

Hey Krysta, it’s Todd. I hope I got the right number. I just wanted to tell you that I think you’re super cute and I really want to hang out more. I’ll be at Makeout Point at 9:40 tonight if you’re available. I really hope you are.

It was Todd’s turn to freeze. He reread the message, only stumbling where their names had been switched. He looked at his crush, baffled.

“What does this mean?”

Krysta’s brow furrowed in concern. “I was talking to my Dad about this kind of thing not too long ago. They’re called phishing attacks—spelled like the band—and they’re used to steal data and basically manipulate people into doing what the attacker wants. Most people think of emails, but they can use any form of communication. Dad’s work was dealing with them a lot a while ago.”

“So, you think that’s what is happening here?”

The young woman nodded. “It has to be, right? I mean, I’m not upset to be here with you, obviously, but someone set this up.”

Todd felt a chill deep in his bones. Outside, the wind whispered, carrying a soft, metallic twinkle.

Suddenly, a figure appeared next to the passenger side door, trying the handle. Krysta, to her credit, managed to hit the lock button. Before Todd could react, she had started the car, shifted to reverse, and was flying backward down the winding road. Once she could, she spun the car around and took off even faster, quickly putting distance between them and Makeout Point.

They made it to the other side of town and parked by the roadside. Getting out of the car, both Todd and Krysta stumbled to the sidewalk, fear and adrenaline still urging them to flee. After a few moments, they calmed down enough to look around.

Looking at Krysta’s car, they froze again. Hanging from the door handle was a bloodied glove, covered in fishhooks.

***

Phishing is a serious problem for everyone, private people and businesses alike… and while your business may not be at risk of being lured to a remote location by a serial killer, the risk of being phished and losing critical data or letting in a threat is certainly there.

We’re here to help prevent that for your business and your team. Reach out to us to learn more about our cybersecurity services by calling (501) 375-1111, and have a happy and safe Halloween.