---
title: "Hackers Use Recent Tragedies to Target Phishing Victims | Phish Protection"
description: "Hackers have no soul. They will use any means available to target victims with phishing emails, including seizing on the latest widely-known tragedies."
image: "https://phishprotection.com/og/blog/hackers-use-recent-tragedies-to-target-phishing-victims.png"
canonical: "https://phishprotection.com/blog/hackers-use-recent-tragedies-to-target-phishing-victims/"
---

Quick Answer

On January 26th, Kobe Bryant, an internationally-recognized sports superstar died in a helicopter crash outside Los Angeles. It didn't take long for the heartless hackers to try and take advantage of the tragic event. According to \[KDBJ7\](https://www.wdbj7.com/content/news/BBB-warns-of-phishing-and-clickbait-scams-following-death-of-Kobe-Bryant-567466291.html) in Virginia, "BBB warns of phishing and \*\*clickbait scams\*\* following the death of Kobe Bryant. The sender claims to be from a reputable news organization capitalizing on trending news with an exclusive video, image, or document they want to share with you. \_These

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_Hackers have no soul_. They will use any means available to target victims with phishing emails, including seizing on the latest widely-known tragedies. And you have to be aware of it.

On January 26th, Kobe Bryant, an internationally-recognized sports superstar died in a helicopter crash outside Los Angeles. It didn’t take long for the heartless hackers to try and take advantage of the tragic event. According to [KDBJ7](https://www.wdbj7.com/content/news/BBB-warns-of-phishing-and-clickbait-scams-following-death-of-Kobe-Bryant-567466291.html) in Virginia, “BBB warns of phishing and **clickbait scams** following the death of Kobe Bryant. The sender claims to be from a reputable news organization capitalizing on trending news with an exclusive video, image, or document they want to share with you. _These links can lead users to a malicious website once clicked_.”

![Phishing prevention best practices](https://media.mailhop.org/phishprotection/images/2020/02/phishing-prevention-best-practices-4968.jpg) 

This use of “clickbait” to scam victims is nothing new, just the headlines change.

_Another recent tragedy hackers are trying to take advantage of to phish people is the spread of the Coronavirus_. According to [Wired Magazine](https://www.wired.com/story/coronavirus-phishing-scams/), “Amid international efforts to contain transmission of the virus, online scammers have already begun exploiting the uncertainty and fear.”

In this case, hackers were promising information on how to protect yourself from the virus. From the article, “A sample **phishing email** from Tuesday shows attackers disseminating malicious links and PDFs that claim to contain information on how to protect yourself from the spread of the disease.” And of course clicking on the link embedded in the email only leads to trouble.

Not to be outdone, other hackers used the Coronavirus to target a hospital in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. From [CTV News](https://barrie.ctvnews.ca/coronavirus-scam-hits-local-hospitals-1.4792223), “Fake texts and social media posts have been circulating about cases of coronavirus at Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre and Collingwood General and Marine Hospital.” And of course the text had a link to click which leads to who knows where.

![Phishing attack prevention](https://media.mailhop.org/phishprotection/images/2020/02/phishing-attack-prevention-4957.jpg) 

How can you protect yourself from these “tragedy” phishing emails? The same way you protect yourself from any phishing email. _By using technology that doesn’t get fooled by the latest headline or scare tactics_. By using technology that looks at embedded links to see if they’re malicious or not. By using technology like [Phish Protection](/).

Phish Protection is **cloud-based email security** software which protects you and your organization from all the phishing exploits like domain name spoofing, display name spoofing and malicious attachments. And the best part is, _Phish Protection requires no hardware, no software, no maintenance, sets up in 10 minutes and costs only pennies per user per month_.

Don’t fall victim to heartless hackers. Protect yourself with Phish Protection. _Try it for free for 30 days_.

## Topics

[ Phishing ](/tags/phishing/) 

![Brad Slavin](https://media.mailhop.org/phishprotection/images/authors/brad-slavin.jpg) 

[ Brad Slavin ](/authors/brad-slavin/) 

General Manager

Founder and General Manager of DuoCircle. Product strategy and commercial lead across DuoCircle's 2,000+ customer base.

[LinkedIn Profile →](https://www.linkedin.com/in/bradslavin) 

## Protect your inbox from phishing attacks

Real-time email security with 60-day free trial. No credit card required.

[Start Free Trial](https://portal.duocircle.com/cart.php?a=add&pid=101&brand=phishprotection) [View Pricing](/pricing/) 

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