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Domain Keys in the Fight Against Phishing

Anybody with an email address is likely to have countless amounts of phishing messages in their inbox, and they may not even realize it.  This type of threat usually doesn’t come at you with the attention-grabbing headlines of advertising spam or the unbelievable plots attached to the fraudulent messages carrying Nigerian scams.  In many cases, a phishing message doesn’t look much like spam at all, even though it is a well crafted plan to steal your money.  Believe it or not, a large number of people have fallen victim to this clever scam so it is important that you know how to recognize and avoid it.

What is Phishing?

Phishing is a sophisticated scam based on social networking.  Unlike other attacks where intruders rely on vulnerabilities in a server or website application, these scam artists would prefer that the system remain intact.   Instead, they look for vulnerabilities in the actual person themselves, hoping they can find someone who is trusting enough to believe the alarming message in their inbox and respond or follow the provided link.

There are essentially two types of phishing.  One approach involves a scam artist sending you an email and purporting as a representative of an institution you do business with.  This could be any type of company from a bank to someone pretending to be affiliated with PayPal or eBay.  They will inform you that there is problem with your existing account and that your login credentials are needed to fix it.

The second approach is similar yet distinct from the method above.  A phony representative attempts to alarm you by stating that there is a problem with your account.  However, they don’t ask for you to respond with your login credentials, but simply follow the provided link so they can either verify your personal information or correct the problem.  After clicking the link, you are not redirected to an official online banking or PayPal website, yet a rogue site that looks strikingly similar, so much that distinguishing it from the real deal might be difficult.  Upon entering the requested information, you are essentially handing over the keys to your valuable assets and possibly your identity.

So, what role will DomainKeys play in the fight against phishing?  As a product owned by Yahoo and integrated into its web-based mail system, the technology will help to protect you against email scams in the following ways:

Website owners register their Domain Name Servers with the DomainKeys system from which emails are required to be transmitted from a registered server.

DomainKeys incorporates an additional header to message, identifying the sender’s domain name server to verify where the message originated.

The message is then verified by the web-based mail system which analyzes the header to ensure that it originates from where it claims.  If the header isn’t validated, the message is automatically sent to a spam folder.

Yahoo has been working to push DomainKeys as a standard for web-based anti-phishing for sometime now.  With Gmail recently picking up the technology, it’s very likely that it will become standardized in the very near future.  Unfortunately, internet criminals are quite persistent and seem to find a way around the most efficient security mechanisms.  Whether you use a free web-based mail system by Yahoo, Gmail or through your own website, the best advice is to never respond to a suspicious email or click on any links.  If a message appears legitimate, contact the company personally and speak with an official representative.  This will determine if someone was trying to bait you with a phishing scam.

Generating Traffic with Search Engines

There are several ways to go about marketing your site and generating traffic.  However, some of these methods are quite risky and simply not worth the time and effort they require.  Marketing companies will attempt to sell you on everything from bulk email campaigns and pop-up advertisements to link farms and banner impressions.  While these tools have proven to be effective, most of them will not be well received by your niche market.  For instance, many people find mass mailings (spam) and pop-ups so intrusive and annoying that they stay away from anyone that uses them.  These methods certainly are not the best way to make impact on your audience and just could be a huge waste of money.  The hit or miss aspect of common marketing techniques is all the more reason to consider the search engines for bringing in traffic.

One of the best ways to gain a significant amount of traffic is to base your efforts on relevance, the driving factor of every online search engine.  A number of different studies show that an estimated 80% to 90% of first time visitors find a website via search engine.  These customers are more likely to lead to sales and conversions because they are already coming in with some level of interest.

On the web, first impressions are everything and you typically do not get a second chance to win over your visitors.  Chances are, someone who endured a bad experience on your site will never come back while the exact opposite could lead you to success.  If your site is user-friendly and offers the content they are looking for, the visitor will return whether they make an on the spot purchase or not.

Search engines like Google and Yahoo can provide you with a steady flow of targeted visitors.  And unlike other marketing techniques, these benefits will do not have to cost you a single penny.  The only thing a search engine wants from you is good, clean relevant content that matches up with what web surfers are looking for.  Give the roaming spiders what they want so they can do what they are programmed to.  If you are able to produce this content on your site, you will be rewarded with quality traffic.

Last Words

Rather than viewing your website simply as a virtual business card, think of it as a piece of real estate that increases in value just like residential property.  Research a few keywords that your niche audience is most likely to enter into a search engine to find you.  Clearly explain to visitors what is is that you do and how they can benefit.  Network with others in the industry to build yourself a fair amount of quality links.  Make sure your website is rich with content and optimized for the search engine.  All of this will enable you to generate traffic naturally.  When designing for both your visitors and the search engines, your rankings will inevitably increase and shower you with additional traffic.