That data breach alert might be a trap

Receiving a data breach notice may have once been a rare event. With data breaches hitting record numbers, however, these notifications are no longer as surprising as they once were. In the US alone, there were 3,322 such breaches reported last year, resulting in nearly 280 million notices being emailed to victims. In Europe, daily incidents grew by 22% annually in 2025 to reach 443 on average per day.

This represents a growing opportunity for fraudsters. They know that many people may be on the lookout for these notifications. And when they receive one, they may be more predisposed to follow the advice contained in it.

To be clear: real breaches happen every day, and ignoring a legitimate notice could be as dangerous as clicking a fake one. The goal is to stop reacting on autopilot and being able to tell a genuine alert from a fake one. Take ...