Fake websites are wreaking phishing havoc
Barracuda Networks, Tuesday, July 15th, 2025
Phishing attacks involving fake Web sites that impersonate well-known brands are now occurring at a level of scale that once seemed unimaginable.
Cybersecurity researchers at NordVPN earlier this month revealed they have been able to identify more than 120,000 malicious websites impersonating Amazon, that were set up in the last two months. In total, security researchers have seen 92,000 phishing sites with an Amazon name, with 21,000 fake Amazon websites attempting to install malware. Another 11,000 sites were selling fake goods.
At the same time, analysts from Silent Push, a provider of cybersecurity intelligence services, reported the discovery of thousands of fake Web sites impersonating well-known brands such as Apple, Harbor Freight Tools, Wayfair, Guitar Center, Lane Bryant and Wrangler Jeans. These fake sites even appear to be processing transactions through PayPal and Google for goods that are never delivered. That approach enables the cybercriminals to sell credit card information without raising suspicions for transactions that, as far as a financial services firm is concerned, never occurred.