Alright, enough already... it's time to address this head on. Normally when I'm in a series of writing (right now it's "Success on the Web") I wouldn't break the chain, but this warrants such an event.

Phishing attacks are getting out of control. Phishing schemes have increased by 226% as of late, and if phishing doesn't get you, maybe it'll be the viruses and worms, such as Sober and Mytob, that are continuing to spread rapidly.

According to IBM's May Global Business Security Index, the increase in phishing attacks to the rise of zombie botnets being used to pump out massive volumes of the scam e-mails used in phishing attacks, as cyber-criminals look to increase their profits. IBM's report also indicates that in May more than 30% of e-mails contained some form of virus a 33% increase from the previous month. In many instances, the virus traveling via e-mail infiltrated a computer's hard drive and then forwarded itself to the user's entire address book.

Do these people (or bots) not have anything better to do?

In addition, the phishing e-mails themselves are getting more sophisticated in the language and tactics they employ. Instead of simply saying "click here," many of these phishing e-mails present a problem to the recipient: A user account will be closed without action, for example, or a problem with a shipment has been encountered. Believing they are responding to legitimate business correspondence, many users naively release their sensitive financial data, such as bank account numbers or credit card information, in response to such messages. Some of these emails are getting so realistic, that the phony domains and websites the links portal you too look authentic as well; even some of the domains are nearly dead on.

Ultimately this is creating more than one headache too. It's a major issue for consumers in general... you have to fight off the phishers to do any shopping online, and your email has gone from being your "best friend" to this spying, stealing, and creepy Viagra selling scary salesman. How did we get to this point?

But many people really fail to see the bigger picture; that this isn't just about consumers, this takes a stab at the very heart of America itself - small businesses; especially online (and most have gone digital long since Y2K). Yep, folks just like me and maybe even you suffer from this. And here's why...

My business takes one type of payment, the online type. Why? Simple... I do worldwide business, and I can't afford the risks of checks from all over the country/world or the hassle of the paperwork involved from money orders, etc. I also can't sit around all day (at my job or otherwise) and take credit cards by phone 24/7. Like many small business owners online, I do work another job and have a social life. Online payments are convenient, easy, and verified from the get-go; no extra work, hours, or hassle for me and countless others who simply don't have the financial means or manpower to hold down a fortress of e-commerce. For me, it's PayPal, and overall I'm really pleased with the system, it's fantastic for me and it's really easy. But I hear you now, "Sooo John, what's the problem?"

The problem is that as consumers trust the internet less and less, it means less and less business comes my and countless other small-business owners way. Our profits decrease, our businesses suffer, and we're left with frustrated customers who want to send checks, money orders, and call to give me their credit card. Let's be honest... I don't trust personal checks from the next state over much less five; I don't want to screw around with money-orders (who does anymore?); and even if you gave me your credit card number by phone I couldn't do much with it (though PayPal just released something that helps on this... but it's still a time issue). Point is, people not willing to pay online means other people (like me - small biz owner) suffer the consequences.

So for all the phishing schemes and other manipulative emails, websites, and applications plaguing the internet, geee thanks for ruining business.

The real question is what can you do about it? Who can seriously put a stop to this mess and who can even begin to enforce a problem that's literally world-wide. Half the time we can't even track the "bad guys" through virtual space without dumping a ton of money on the subject, and with a few million schemes a day, where do you even start? The fact it's almost all automated now isn't helping... it's like tracing a pinball in a pinball machine the size of a 30 story building.

So for now, I guess I'll throw my hands up in disgust, and just hope... hope that my customers don't get too scared to buy my products online. In the meantime I'll also pray my identity stays mine and that some guy in Taiwan doesn't buy 45 big screen TV's on my Discover card. After all, when I'm not being a store owner, I'm a consumer too. I'm a victim twice over; and all I can do is hope for a change...

John C. Derrick
Founder