Phishing vs. spam. To the layman, they may sound like the same thing. But as you will find out by the end of this post, they are very different in what they do.

Phishing and spam are two common types of online nuisances that often target unsuspecting individuals through email or other digital mediums.

Spam primarily involves sending unsolicited and often irrelevant mass messages to a wide audience, intending to promote products, services, or websites.

On the other hand, phishing is a more sinister tactic, involving fraudulent attempts to deceive users into revealing sensitive information, such as passwords or financial details, by posing as a legitimate entity.

Imagine this: You are Peter. And Peter checks his phone first thing every morning. Now all you really want to do is get quick updates on life; How is your sister’s dog doing? When is Harriet (your best friend)’s getting married? Are people still trying to build another Titanic?

But instead of all that, you are hit with a deluge of spam and phishing emails. ‘What did I ever do to deserve this?’ you ask, defeated.

Phishing vs Spam: What is the difference?

Phishing is the real troublemaker. It is a social engineering scam that is designed to defraud you. Cybercriminals can accomplish this by sending an email that appears ‘harmless and genuine’ at first glance.

A phishing email contains a malicious link that can steal your personal, financial or professional information. They cause real damage by stealing:

• Passwords
  

• Login credentials
  

• Citizenship information
  

• Banking details
  

Phishing relies on more than emails as a delivery mechanism. Since the idea is to trick the target, scammers also rely on:

• Fake websites
  

• Spoofed email
  

• Social engineering
  

Psychology also plays a massive role in designing phishing campaigns. Over the years, online scammers have tried to trap unsuspecting victims with:

• Fake invoice scam
  

• Email account upgrade scam
  

• advance fee scam
  

• PayPal scam
  

• Unusual sign-in activity scam
  

Here are some of the most common types of scams you’re likely to encounter:

Spam is a tactic used by sellers to hawk goods and services to everyone without their consent. It is usually done by sending unwanted emails to a lot of people.

Spam emails are as old as the internet. Spammers usually get ahold of email addresses for many users by scrapping websites or paying third parties. And whether you want it or not, spam messages land on your email address.

Common types of spam emails include:

• Donation requests
  

• Newsletters
  

• Prayer chain forwards
  

• Promotional offers
  

• Coupons
  

• Adult content
  

• Jokes that overstayed their welcome by a decade or two
  

Spam, however, is not necessarily malicious. These are commercial messages pushing you to buy a particular product. Sometimes they include website links.

They are at best, harmless and at worst, annoying.

Legislations like the CAN-SPAM Act have made including opt-out links for spam emails mandatory. Commercial entities are also expected by law to enforce these opt-outs.

A lot of work goes into ensuring that you can't distinguish a phishing message from a real one.

They say prevention is better than cure. For phishing, a few simple steps can thwart the designs of some of the most dastardly scam artists out there:

• Check the sender’s email address. Usually, the website or domain is not credible.
  

• There are grammatical errors in the content.
  

• The URLs in the phishing message are too complicated or misspelled.
  

• You get a call to action, asking you to download an attachment or click a link before you can “view important information” or “verify your account.”
  

• The email says you must do X or Y to prevent your account from being suspended. It sounds a little too urgent.

Believe it or not, quite a lot goes into making that boring and generic spam email. Here is a look at the process of how a spam email comes into being and where it ends up:

• They are usually from a brand or sender you have never subscribed to.
  

• They contain an unfamiliar email address.
  

• They are overly promotional.
  

Apart from this, you can observe these simple rules:

With this information, Peter knows how to minimize the likelihood of ever encountering spam or phishing content. 

Understanding the distinctions between phishing and spam is vital for maintaining online security. While both pose risks, phishing involves targeted deception, while spam focuses on mass distribution.

We hope this post helps you stay alert. Look out for any warning signs. Take steps to protect your data from cyber threats that are constantly changing.

Need to know how to spot a phishing scam?

Here are some tell-tale signs that help you spot spam messages: