Phishing: A New Age of Bank Robbery

Want to know why phishing attacks increased in 2014 to their highest level in five years? Compare phishing to the messy business of offline bank robbery.

In its most recent release of bank crime statistics (2011), the FBI reported 5,000 annual bank robberies in the United States. In 90 percent of those cases, robbers made off with some form of loot (e.g., cash, checks, safe deposit box contents) totaling some $38.3 million. These robberies involved the physical presence of the criminals, which not only exposed them to the possibility of getting caught, but also greatly increased their chances of being killed (10 of 13 robbery-related deaths that year were the perpetrators). Bank robbery is risky business. And with an average take of less than $8,000, it's a testament to the adage that crime doesn't pay.