What does phishing typically involve?

Phishing typically involves a technique used to trick individuals into providing sensitive information. This deceptive practice often takes the form of emails, messages, or websites that appear to be from trustworthy sources, such as banks or popular online services. The goal is to mislead individuals into believing they are interacting with a legitimate entity, prompting them to disclose personal information such as passwords, credit card numbers, or social security numbers.

This malicious tactic exploits psychological triggers, such as fear, urgency, or curiosity, to prompt immediate action from the victim without sufficient scrutiny. For example, an email may claim that there’s a problem with an account and direct the user to click a link and verify their credentials, when in fact, the link leads to a fraudulent site designed to capture the entered information.

The other choices do not accurately describe phishing. The reference to encryption relates to securing data rather than deception, system downtime addresses operational disruptions rather than information theft, and legitimate marketing strategies do not involve trickery or deceit. Thus, the focus on tricking individuals for sensitive information aligns perfectly with the true nature of phishing.