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November 09, 2006 (Computerworld) -- Browser makers may have added new antiphishing features to their products in recent months, but criminals are still gaining ground in their schemes to defraud U.S. consumers, according to researcher firm Gartner Inc.
Phishers have hit more victims with their online attacks, and while fewer people are being scammed, successful attempts have been yielding bigger payoffs, said Avivah Litan, an analyst at Gartner. "When they do succeeded, they're stealing five times more than they stole last year," she said.
The average loss per phishing attack was $1,244 this year, Litan said, up from $256. Gartner estimates that the total financial losses attributable to phishing will reach $2.8 billion this year.
And users who are taken in by phishing scams are less likely to recover their money, Litan said. In 2005, 80% of victims got their money back. This year, that number dropped to 54%.
Gartner estimates that 3.5 million Americans will give up sensitive information to phishers in 2006 -- up from an estimated 1.9 million who did so last year.
Although the recently released Internet Explorer 7 and Firefox 2.0 browsers come with new antiphishing features, Microsoft Corp. and Mozilla Corp. are still playing catch-up with the crooks.
Phishers have hit more victims with their online attacks, and while fewer people are being scammed, successful attempts have been yielding bigger payoffs, said Avivah Litan, an analyst at Gartner. "When they do succeeded, they're stealing five times more than they stole last year," she said.
The average loss per phishing attack was $1,244 this year, Litan said, up from $256. Gartner estimates that the total financial losses attributable to phishing will reach $2.8 billion this year.
And users who are taken in by phishing scams are less likely to recover their money, Litan said. In 2005, 80% of victims got their money back. This year, that number dropped to 54%.
Gartner estimates that 3.5 million Americans will give up sensitive information to phishers in 2006 -- up from an estimated 1.9 million who did so last year.
Although the recently released Internet Explorer 7 and Firefox 2.0 browsers come with new antiphishing features, Microsoft Corp. and Mozilla Corp. are still playing catch-up with the crooks.