Distinguish phishing as an attempt to gain personal or financial information from an individual, usually by posing as a legitimate entity.

Emphasize that a variant is spear phishing, a label that applies to any highly targeted phishing attack. While normal phishing attacks target as many recipients as possible, a spear phisher sends a message that appears to be from an employer, a colleague, or other legitimate correspondent to a small group, or even one specific person.

Discuss that phishing attacks use two primary techniques, often used in combination with one another: URL manipulation and Web site forgery.