Phishing is a cybercrime that involves tricking people into revealing their sensitive information, such as passwords or credit card details, by posing as a trustworthy entity.

How to identify phishing emails

It's important to be aware of the key indicators while looking at phishing emails versus legitimate emails:

• Emails often appear to be from a trusted source, such as a bank or online retailer, but they may contain links to fake websites or request you to provide sensitive information.
• Check the sender's email address. Phishing emails often use fake email addresses that look like they are from a legitimate source but are slightly different:
  • Look for spelling and grammar mistakes.
  • The text on links can look legitimate but point to a different location. Hover over the link or view source to see where it’s actually pointing to.

What to do when you receive a suspicious email

• Do not click on links or download attachments.
• Delete the email and report as spam or phishing if your email provider has this option. 
  • Learn how to report phishing activity on Gmail

Examples of phishing emails: Fake invoices

Receiving an invoice for books that you haven’t purchased 
These appear to be from Rakuten Kobo. Both Kobo & non-Kobo customers receive these fake invoices.

Here are some easy steps to identify fake invoices:

• Hover your mouse cursor over the book title and make sure it goes to a Kobo product page. The link should take you to a page starting with https://www.kobo.com.
• Verify that the title in the receipt is something you purchased.
  
  
  

Malicious links in the emails

In the example below, the receipt number re-directs you to a non-legitimate website if you click the link. Do not click this link. Opening the link will download malware to your computer.

Real invoice indicators

• You'll see your name in the first sentence of the email.
  The name you see here will be the same name as you used to create your Kobo profile.
  
  
  
• When you hover your mouse cursor over the title of the book, you'll see a link that goes to the Kobo Store. The link begins with https://www.kobo.com.
  
  
  
• Your receipt number will appear as a black font that is text-only. Text-only means that you shouldn't be able to click on the receipt number. If you can click on the receipt number, it means that the receipt is fake.
  
  
  

Learn more

• Improve your Kobo account's security