Update, Dec. 19, 2024: This story, originally published Dec. 18 now includes details of newly published warnings regarding phishing attacks against Gmail and other email platforms.
As it issues a warning that a second wave of cyber threats against Gmail users is incoming from very persistent attackers, Google has detailed the specific attack methodologies involved and recommended actions that all 2.5 billion Gmail users employ to stay safe and secure. Here’s what you need to know.
Google Has Confirmed Email Scams Are Surging—Here’s What Gmail Users Need To Know
Although when compared to last year, the number of phishing attacks are down by 35% during the holiday season so far, Andy Wen, Gmail’s senior director of product management, said, the “attackers are very persistent and typically gear up for a second wave of attacks at this point in the season.” Indeed, since mid-November, Google has said it has observed a “massive surge in email traffic compared to previous months,” which makes protecting your Gmail inboxes a “greater challenge than normal.” With in excess of 2.5 billion users, according to Google itself, Gmail is naturally the prime target for attackers and keeping those inboxes secure is something that Google takes seriously. “We invest heavily to meet this responsibility, blocking more than 99.9% of spam, phishing and malware in Gmail,” Wen said.
In a newly published blog posting, Wen said that Gmail users have reported a third fewer scams, including both phishing and malware in this definition, during the first month of the holiday season than in 2023. “Millions more unwanted and potentially dangerous messages were blocked before they even reached inboxes,” Wen said. Here’s how Google protected those Gmail users, along with the threats it has warned you need to be alert to as 2024 draws to a close.
Gmail Has New Spam And Scam Tech To Protect Users From Attack
Google is very keen, and quite rightly, to point out how new technology it has put in place continues to protect billions of Gmail users from attack. “This year, we developed several ground-breaking AI models that significantly strengthened Gmail cyber-defenses,” Wen said, “including a new large language model that we trained on phishing, malware and spam.” This, Google said, enabled 20% more spam to be blocked, by the identification of malicious patterns than previously. An even newer AI model, introduced just before Black Friday, according to Wen, “acts like a supervisor for our existing AI defenses by instantly evaluating hundreds of threat signals when a risky message is flagged and deploying the appropriate protection.” And doing so, apparently, in the blink of an eye.
The Second Wave Of Gmail Attacks—What To Watch Out For
Google has warned that a second wave of cyber attacks targeting Gmail users is incoming and, specifically, alerted them to three that are “in heavy use” currently:
Gmail Extortion Scams
This “vicious and scary” scam involves sending an email that includes details of the victim’s home address. The so-called “We know where you live” attack. There are multiple versions doing the rounds, often including photography of your home. “They generally either include threats of physical harm or threats of releasing damaging personal material they say they acquired through a hack,” Wen said.
Gmail Invoice Scams
As the name rather gives away, these attacks involving the sending of fake invoices with the intent to trick the recipient into contacting them to dispute the charges, which can be done for a fee. This negotiation is often done over the phone, having provided a number to call in the Gmail message. “These scams aren’t new,” Wen said. “but are persistent and incredibly prevalent this holiday season.”
Gmail Celebrity Scams
You can probably file these scams in the brand-impersonation category, but the brand being impersonated is a human being. “Over the past month, many of the most common scams popping up reference famous people,” Wen warned, “either pretending to come from the celebrity themself or claiming a given celebrity is endorsing a random product.”
Gmail Users Must Take Note Of All Email Phishing Attacks—Here’s Why
It’s important not to get too focused on Gmail threats alone when the truth of the matter is all phishing threats are of concern to users of all email platforms. That means being aware of more than just the primary “second wave” Gmail threats that Google has issued this warning about. Newly published research revealed the reason why: phishing attacks targeting your passwords rose by more than 700% in the seconds half of 2024 according to SlashNext.
SlashNext analysts said that the sharp upturn in credential theft attacks highlights another upturn: the use of “sophisticated phishing kits and social engineering tactics.” When it comes to email attacks specifically, these are also on an upward incline with a rise of more than 200% in the same timeframe. Individual users, the report warned, received “at least one advanced phishing link per week capable of bypassing traditional network security controls.” Worryingly, of all the embedded links observed by SlashNext, some 80% were of the zero-day, previously unknown to researchers and vendors, type. “The reported 202% rise in email-based threats coincides with the integration of hybrid attack vectors,” Callie Guenther, senior manager of cyber threat research at detection and response provider Critical Start, said, “where malicious links, QR codes, and attachments are combined to bypass conventional defenses.” Guenther also warned that social engineering and AI-driven phishing campaigns are fueling a shift toward tailored attacks that leverage compromised credentials harvested at scale. “Cybercriminals use legitimate but compromised email accounts to execute internal phishing, invoice fraud, or real-time interception of one-time passwords,” Guenther said, “This trend suggests attackers are focused on monetizing phishing efforts through multiple vectors, including ransomware and cryptojacking payloads embedded in phishing campaigns.”
Meanwhile, Nicole Carignan, vice president of strategic cyber AI at Darktrace, said: “Despite increased focus on email security, organizations and their employees continue to be plagued by successful phishing attempts. Many tools used by organizations today depend on historical attack data to identify and stop known email threats from reentering inboxes. However, this approach often fails to recognize new or unknown threats.”
Mitigating The Second Wave Of Gmail Attacks
Take Your Time
Most scams create a sense of urgency to demand a knee-jerk response and do something you might not given more time to think about it. So slow down, count to 10, or 20, ask yourself is this too good to be true, is this a sensible response.
Do Your Research
And talking of asking yourself is something is too good to be true, or is sending you to a genuine destination, Google recommended doing your research. “Double-check the details of an email,” Wen said, “can you validate the email address of the sender?”
Do Not Send
“No reputable person or agency will ever demand payment or your personal information on the spot,” Wen said. So, do not send anything. Just stop. Good advice.
Report It
Although you may wonder what the point in reporting these phishing attacks is, marking it as spam not only helps clean up your Gmail inbox but, Wen concluded, helps billions of other Gmail users too by adding to the threat intelligence Google’s AI defenses collect.
