Sep 15, 2026 | Cybersecurity
Summary: Most small-business websites run on WordPress, and the biggest risk is usually old plugins that nobody has updated. Attackers scan the web for these known weak spots and use the sites they find to spread malware, post spam, or steal what visitors type into forms. Keeping the site and its plugins updated, and knowing who is responsible for that, prevents most of it.
Your website is one of those things you set up once and then stop thinking about. It sits there doing its job, so there's no reason to touch it. That's exactly why a neglected website is one of the common ways a small business gets hacked.
Most small-business sites run on WordPress, which powers more than 40% of all websites, according to W3Techs. WordPress itself is solid. The risk is usually the plugins and themes added to it, which often don't get updated for years.
How a neglected website gets hacked
Attackers don't usually pick your business by name. They run automated tools that scan huge numbers of websites looking for known weak spots, like a plugin with a security hole that hasn't been fixed. When the tool finds one, it breaks in. It's all automatic, and it isn't aimed at you personally.
That's why old plugins are the problem. When a plugin maker finds a security flaw, they release an update to fix it. Until you install that update, the hole stays open, and the automated scanners know exactly what to look for. Security researchers who track WordPress flaws find that the large majority are in plugins and themes, not in WordPress itself.
What a hacked website is used for
A hacked website rarely announces itself. Instead of shutting your site down, attackers usually keep it running and use it for their own purposes:
- Serving malware. Your site gets changed so that visitors are infected or pushed to a page that tries to install something.
- Spam and scam pages. Attackers add hidden pages selling fake goods or pushing scams, riding on your site's good standing with search engines.
- Stealing form data. If your site has a contact or checkout form, a hacked site can copy what people type into it, including personal or payment details.
- Redirects. Visitors who click your link get sent somewhere else, often a scam or malware site.
The damage lands on you even though the attacker was after your visitors. Search engines flag hacked sites with warnings and drop them down the rankings, and browsers may block them, so customers see a red "this site may be dangerous" screen instead of your homepage.
Is your website at risk?
It depends on how your site is built.
If you use a hosted website builder like Wix, Squarespace, or Shopify, most of the security and updates are handled for you behind the scenes, so your risk is lower.
If you have a self-hosted WordPress site, usually set up by a web designer or agency on your own hosting, then keeping WordPress, the plugins, and the themes updated is someone's job. The question is whose. On a lot of small-business sites, the honest answer is that nobody has touched it since it launched.
You can usually tell your site is at risk if you don't know who maintains it, it hasn't been updated in a year or more, or it's running plugins from a developer who has since disappeared.
How to keep your website safe
- Keep everything updated. WordPress, plugins, and themes all need updating when new versions come out. Many sites can be set to update automatically.
- Remove plugins you don't use. Every extra plugin is another thing that can go wrong. If you're not using it, delete it.
- Stick to well-known plugins. Use ones that are popular, well-reviewed, and updated recently. Avoid anything that hasn't been touched in years.
- Watch for abandoned plugins. Sometimes a plugin stops being updated, or gets removed from the plugin store because of a security problem. When that happens it stops getting fixes, so check now and then that the plugins on your site are still supported, and replace any that aren't.
- Lock down the admin login. Use a strong, unique password for the website's admin account, and turn on multi-factor authentication if your setup supports it.
- Add a security plugin or web firewall. A reputable one can block common attacks and warn you when something changes. Your web host or IT provider can recommend one.
- Keep backups. If the worst happens, a recent backup lets you restore the site instead of rebuilding it from scratch.
- Know who's responsible. Decide who looks after updates and security, whether that's your web designer, your IT provider, or your hosting company, and make sure it's clearly somebody's job.
What to do if your site is hacked
If your site does get hacked, moving quickly limits the damage:
- Get help straight away. Cleaning a hacked site properly is a job for your web host, IT provider, or a website security service. Most hosts have dealt with this many times and can help.
- Take the site offline. Putting up a simple "down for maintenance" page stops visitors from being harmed while it's cleaned up.
- Change the passwords. From a device you know is clean, change the passwords for your hosting account and the website's admin login, and turn on multi-factor authentication.
- Restore a clean backup. If you have a backup from before the hack, restoring it is often the fastest fix. If you don't, the site will need to be cleaned by hand.
- Update and tidy up before it goes back live. Update WordPress, the plugins, and the themes, and remove anything you don't recognize or no longer use, so the same hole doesn't get used again.
- Tell anyone whose data was affected. If the site handled customer details or payments, check whether any of that was exposed, and let those people know if it was.
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if my website has been hacked?
Common signs are a warning from Google or your browser, a drop in search traffic, pages or pop-ups you didn't add, or your web host getting in touch about a problem. If you're not sure, your IT provider or web host can check.
Do I need to update my website if it works fine?
Yes. A site can look completely normal to you while an out-of-date plugin leaves a door open for attackers. Updates close those holes, which is why they matter even when nothing looks wrong.
I use Wix or Squarespace. Am I at risk?
Much less so. Hosted builders handle the updates and most of the security for you. You should still use a strong admin password and MFA, but you're not responsible for patching plugins the way a self-hosted WordPress site is.
Who should maintain my website?
Someone should own it clearly: your web designer or agency, your IT provider, or your hosting company, depending on your setup. The important thing is that someone is actually doing the updates.
What is a security plugin or web firewall?
It's a tool that sits on your website, blocks common attacks, watches for changes, and can alert you to problems. On WordPress, a reputable security plugin is a common, low-cost way to add that protection.
Sources and further reading
If you're not sure whether your website is being kept up to date, or who's responsible for it, that's worth sorting out before something goes wrong. Your IT provider or web host can check where things stand and take over the upkeep. And if you don't have an IT provider, feel free to reach out to us and we'll help you sort it.
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Sep 10, 2026 | Cybersecurity
Summary: Scammers buy ads on Google and other search engines using the names of trusted brands and software, so their fake site shows up at the very top, above the real one. Click it and you can land on a fake page that steals your login or installs malware. You can avoid nearly all of it by skipping the sponsored results and going to the real website yourself.
When you search Google for a program to download or a website to log into, the first thing you see is usually an ad. It sits at the top, marked "Sponsored," and most people click it without a second thought, because the top result is normally what you wanted.
Scammers count on that. They buy ads on the names of trusted companies and popular software, so their fake site appears right at the top, above the real one, and you click it thinking it's the official page.
How the scam works
The trick is called malvertising, short for malicious advertising. A scammer buys a search ad for a term people trust, like the name of your bank, a Microsoft login, or a common program such as a PDF reader or a video player. The ad looks normal, with the real brand name and a web address that looks right.
When someone clicks it, they land on a page built to look exactly like the real one. Sometimes that page asks you to log in and hands your username and password straight to the scammer. Other times it offers the software you were after, and the download installs malware instead of the real program.
Why these ads are so easy to fall for
These ads are convincing. They sit above the real result, so they're the first thing you see. They use the real company's name and a web address that looks right. And they show up on a search you started yourself, so they don't feel as suspicious as a random email or text would.
Attackers have also gotten good at hiding from the checks meant to stop them. They show a clean, harmless page to the ad reviewers and the real, malicious page to everyone else, so the ad can pass review and still do damage.
How common is this?
Very. In its 2025 Ads Safety Report, Google said it blocked or removed more than 8.3 billion ads that broke its rules, suspended 24.9 million advertiser accounts, and took down 602 million ads tied to scams. Google also noted that criminals are now using AI to make fake ads faster.
Security researchers have found scam search ads pretending to be well-known programs like VLC, 7-Zip, and CCleaner, and even Google's own apps, with downloads that installed password-stealing malware. These show up on the everyday searches your team runs.
What this means for your business
For a business, the risk comes up in two everyday situations: downloading software, and logging in.
When someone downloads software, they search for a tool, click the top ad, and install something that steals the passwords and logins saved in their browser.
When someone logs in, they search for "Microsoft 365 login" or their bank, click the ad rather than the official link, and type their username and password straight into a fake page.
In both cases, the problem is info-stealing malware. Once it's on a machine, it can steal saved passwords, browser cookies, and session tokens, which can get an attacker into accounts even when multi-factor authentication is switched on.
How to protect your team
- Scroll past the sponsored results. The ads sit at the top, marked "Sponsored" or "Ad." The real website is usually just below, in the normal results.
- Don't download software from an ad. Type the maker's web address yourself, or search and use the normal result, then download from the official site.
- Bookmark the sites you log into. For your bank, Microsoft 365, and other important accounts, use a saved bookmark instead of searching each time.
- Keep devices and browsers updated. Turn on automatic updates so a bad download is less likely to work.
- Tell your team this is a thing. Most people have no idea the top result can be a trap, and once they know, they stop clicking it.
Frequently asked questions
Aren't ads at the top of Google checked and safe?
Google reviews ads and removes billions that break its rules, but scammers still slip through by showing reviewers a clean page and everyone else the malicious one. A "Sponsored" label doesn't mean the site is safe.
What is malvertising?
Malvertising is short for malicious advertising: scammers buy online ads, often on trusted brand names, to send people to fake sites that steal logins or install malware.
How do I download software safely?
Go to the maker's official website by typing the address yourself, or search and use the normal (non-ad) result. Don't download from a sponsored ad, and don't trust a download that arrives through one.
What should I do if someone clicked a scam ad?
If they only visited the page, close it and don't enter anything. If they typed a password, change it and turn on MFA. If they downloaded and ran a file, disconnect the device and have your IT provider check it for info-stealing malware.
Does an ad blocker help?
It can. A reputable ad blocker hides many sponsored results, which takes the fake links off the page before anyone can click them. It isn't a complete fix, so keep the habits above too.
Sources and further reading
If you'd like to give your team a plain rundown of what a scam ad looks like, or tighten how software gets installed on your computers, your IT provider can help with both. And if you don't have an IT provider, feel free to reach out to us and we'll help you sort it.
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Sep 5, 2026 | Cybersecurity
Summary: Scammers now use AI to write their phishing emails, so the spelling and grammar mistakes that used to give them away are gone. The UK's National Cyber Security Centre and the FBI both warn that AI makes these messages cleaner, more personal, and harder to spot. The way to catch them now is to look at what an email is asking you to do, because the writing no longer gives anything away.
For years, the advice for spotting a scam email was simple: look for bad spelling and clumsy grammar. A real bank or supplier writes properly, the thinking went, so a message full of mistakes was probably fake. It was easy to teach, and for a long time it worked.
It doesn't anymore. Scammers now use AI to write their emails, and AI writes cleanly. The typos and awkward phrasing that used to give phishing away are gone, and the messages landing in your team's inbox read as well as anything from a real company. Worse, they can be written to sound like they came from someone you already know.
Why the old advice stopped working
The spelling-and-grammar tell worked because a lot of scammers were writing in a language that wasn't their own, and the mistakes showed. AI took that away.
The UK's National Cyber Security Centre says generative AI can now create convincing phishing lures "without the translation, spelling and grammatical mistakes that often reveal phishing." The FBI says the same: criminals use AI to limit the grammar and spelling errors that used to mark a message as fake, so it reads as believable. That means the one thing most people were trained to look for no longer tells you much.
Why these emails are so convincing now
- The writing is clean. A scam email reads like a normal business email, because a machine wrote it in seconds, in whatever tone the attacker asked for.
- It's personal. Attackers can feed public details about your company into an AI tool, pulled from your website, your team's LinkedIn profiles, or a press release, and get a message tailored to you: the right names, the right job titles, and a believable reason to be in touch.
- There's more of it. AI makes each message faster to produce, so attackers send far more. The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center added a section on AI to its annual report for the first time, tied to more than 22,000 complaints and nearly $893 million in reported losses.
These days, the scam email isn't the obvious one anymore. Instead of "Dear customer, your account is suspended," someone in your finance team gets a message that looks like it's from a supplier they really deal with, mentions a real project, and asks to update the bank details for the next invoice. It reads exactly like a real supplier email. The only thing wrong is that the supplier never sent it.
Your spam filter won't catch them all
It's tempting to assume your email security will handle this. It catches a lot, and you should keep it switched on. But a well-written, personalized email that asks a normal-sounding question doesn't always look dangerous to a filter, especially when it carries no obvious bad link or attachment. Both the NCSC and the FBI expect AI to push more of these messages through, which is why the last line of defense is a person who knows what to check.
It's not just email anymore
AI has done the same thing to phone calls and texts. The FBI warns that criminals can clone a voice from a short audio clip, enough to leave a voicemail that sounds like your boss or a family member asking for an urgent payment. The same thing that makes AI emails so convincing makes AI phone scams convincing too. The defense is the same: if a call or voicemail asks for money or logins, hang up and call the person back on a number you already have.
Here are the signs you should still pay attention to
If you can't trust how an email is written, look at what it's asking you to do. That's where the real warning signs are, and AI hasn't changed them:
- It asks for money, gift cards, or a payment to a new account.
- It asks for a login, a verification code, or personal details.
- It creates pressure: a deadline, a threat, or a "do this now."
- It asks you to change the bank details for an invoice or a supplier.
- It comes with a link or attachment you weren't expecting.
- The display name looks right, but the actual email address doesn't match it.
Every one of these is about what the email is asking for. So the rule to teach your team is simple: when a message is about money, logins, or how you pay someone, slow down before you act.
How to protect your team
- Check money and login requests another way. If an email asks you to pay a new account or change a supplier's bank details, call the person on a number you already have. Don't reply to the email or use a number it gives you.
- Stop telling staff to watch for bad spelling. Tell them to look at what the email is asking for, and to slow down when it's about money or logins.
- Make one rule for payment changes: confirm every change to bank details by phone, even when it's urgent.
- Turn on phishing-resistant MFA or passkeys, so a stolen password is harder to use even if someone gets tricked.
- Make it easy to report a suspicious email and make sure nobody feels silly for checking.
- Remind the team now and then that scam emails look perfect these days. A quick five-minute chat beats a poster nobody reads.
Frequently asked questions
Can you still spot a phishing email by bad spelling and grammar?
Not reliably. Attackers use AI to write clean, correct emails now, so a message with perfect spelling can still be a scam. Judge it by what it asks you to do.
What are the warning signs that still work?
The request itself: paying money, changing bank details, sharing a login or code, or being pushed to act urgently. Those signs don't depend on how the email reads.
Is AI-generated phishing really more effective?
Yes. The NCSC and the FBI have both warned that AI makes phishing more convincing and more personal, and the FBI has tied AI to tens of thousands of fraud complaints and hundreds of millions in losses. Cleaner, tailored messages get opened and clicked more often.
Will my spam filter stop AI phishing?
It will catch a lot, and you should keep it on. But a well-written, personalized email with no obvious bad link can still look legitimate to a filter, so don't rely on it alone. A trained person is the backstop.
What should staff do if they aren't sure about a message?
Slow down and check through a channel they trust, like calling a known number or asking the person directly. And report it, even if it turns out to be genuine.
Sources and further reading
• NCSC: The near-term impact of AI on the cyber threat — the UK cyber agency on AI producing phishing lures without the usual spelling and grammar mistakes.
• FBI IC3: Criminals Use Generative AI to Facilitate Financial Fraud — how criminals use AI-generated text and cloned voices, and how it removes the usual signs of fraud.
If you'd like help teaching your team what to watch for, or turning on phishing-resistant logins so a fooled password doesn't turn into a break-in, your IT provider can set both up. And if you don't have an IT provider, feel free to reach out to us and we'll help you sort it.
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Aug 30, 2026 | Cybersecurity
Article Summary: If your business is hit by a cyberattack, the first hour matters. Disconnect the affected devices from the network instead of powering them off, call your IT provider by phone, and leave the evidence in place. If money was wired to a scammer, call your bank right away. This post is the step-by-step plan, plus where to report an attack in the US, UK, and Australia.
If a cyberattack hits your business, what you do in the first hour really matters.
It's also the easiest time to make a costly mistake, like turning off the wrong machine, deleting evidence, or replying from an email account the attacker is already reading.
The steps below tell you what to do, in order, so you're not guessing in the moment.
Doing these steps doesn’t require technical knowledge.
Before anything else: don't make it worse
Before you touch anything, avoid these:
- Don't turn the affected computer off, if you can avoid it. Disconnecting it from the network is better, because powering it down can wipe evidence that helps work out what happened.
- Don't delete anything. Leave the ransom note, the suspicious email, and any alerts exactly where they are. They're what your IT team and investigators will need.
- Don't pay a ransom on the spot.
- Don't use the hacked email or accounts to talk about the attack. If an attacker is in your inbox, they can read those messages. Switch to phone calls or a different account.
The step by step
Work through these in order, starting the moment you notice something's wrong.
- Disconnect the affected devices from the network. Unplug the network cable and turn off Wi-Fi on anything that looks affected. This stops the problem spreading to other computers and to your backups. CISA's guidance is to isolate devices rather than power them off where you can, and to shut a device down only if you can't get it off the network any other way.
- Call your IT provider straight away, by phone. Don't email, in case the attacker is watching your inbox. If you have cyber insurance, call them next, because many policies require you to involve their incident team early.
- Leave the evidence alone. Don't wipe, reinstall, or tidy up the affected machines yet. Screenshots of the ransom note or suspicious emails are useful, but keep the originals too.
- If money was sent, call your bank immediately. Ask them to recall the transfer and freeze it if they can. With wire and bank fraud, acting in the first few hours makes the biggest difference.
- Reset passwords from a clean device, and turn on multi-factor authentication. Start with email and any admin accounts, and use a device you know isn't affected.
- Report it. That can help you recover, and it's sometimes legally required. Where to report depends on your country.
Where to report it
You've reaWhere you report depends on where you are:
- United States: file with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), and report to CISA.
- United Kingdom: report through the NCSC, and to Action Fraud.
- Australia: report through ReportCyber, or call the 24/7 hotline on 1300 CYBER1.
If money was wired to a scammer, report it fast.
The FBI says reporting wire fraud to IC3 within 72 hours gives its Recovery Asset Team the best chance of clawing it back, and that team recovers funds in about 70% of the cases reported in time.
If personal data about your customers or staff was exposed, you may be legally required to notify a regulator and the people affected, sometimes within 72 hours.
The rules depend on where you operate, like GDPR in the UK and Europe, state breach-notification laws in the US, and the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme in Australia.
Ask your lawyer or IT provider early so you don't miss a deadline.
Should you pay the ransom?
If it's ransomware, the big question is whether to pay.
The FBI does not recommend it. Paying doesn't guarantee you get your files back, it marks you as a business that pays, and the money funds more attacks.
It's ultimately your decision, but it's one to make with law enforcement, your IT or incident-response team, and your insurer, not alone in the first panicked hour.
Sometimes a free decryption tool already exists for the exact ransomware that hit you, which is one more reason to get the experts involved before you pay anyone.
The best time to prepare is before it happens
All of this is far easier if you've decided some of it in advance. You don't need a thick binder, just a simple plan that covers:
- Who to call first (your IT provider, your insurer) and their numbers, kept somewhere you can reach without your main systems.
- Where your backups are, and proof they've been tested by restoring from them.
- Which accounts and devices matter most, so you know what to protect first.
A single page covering those is enough for most small businesses, and it'll save you a lot of scrambling if the day ever comes.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the first thing to do in a cyberattack?
Disconnect the affected devices from the network, by unplugging the network cable and turning off Wi-Fi, then call your IT provider by phone. Getting the device off the network stops the problem spreading while you get help.
Should I turn off the computer if I get ransomware?
If you can, disconnect it from the network instead of powering it off. Shutting it down can wipe evidence stored in memory that helps work out what happened. Only power a device off if you can't get it off the network any other way.
Should I pay the ransom?
The FBI does not recommend it. Paying doesn't guarantee you get your data back, and it funds more attacks. Make that decision with law enforcement, your IT or incident-response team, and your insurer, and check whether a free decryption tool already exists first.
We wired money to a scammer. What do we do?
Call your bank immediately and ask them to recall the transfer. If you're in the US, report it to the FBI's IC3 within 72 hours, because reported quickly, their Recovery Asset Team recovers the money in about 70% of cases. In other countries, contact your bank and your national reporting service straight away.
Who do I report a cyberattack to?
In the US, the FBI's IC3 and CISA. In the UK, the NCSC and Action Fraud. In Australia, ReportCyber. Also tell your cyber insurer, and check whether you have a legal duty to notify a regulator if personal data was exposed.
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Aug 25, 2026 | Cybersecurity
Article Summary: A passkey lets you sign in to an app or website using the same fingerprint, face, or PIN you use to unlock your phone or laptop, with no password to type. It's built on a security standard called FIDO that can't be phished, because the passkey only works on the real site and there's no password to steal or reuse. Most major platforms and a growing list of business tools support passkeys, and Microsoft 365 includes them at no extra cost. For most businesses, it's worth starting to roll them out, beginning with the most sensitive accounts.
Passwords are the weak point in most businesses.
People reuse them across accounts, write them on sticky notes, and type them into convincing fake login pages without realizing it.
Passkeys are the technology built to replace passwords, and they fix the parts that cause the most trouble.
A passkey lets you sign in with the same fingerprint, face scan, or PIN you already use to unlock your phone or laptop. There's no password to type, so there's nothing for an attacker to steal, guess, or trick out of you.
Let's look at what passkeys are, why they're so much harder to attack than passwords, and whether your business should start using them.
What is a passkey?
A passkey replaces your password with your device's own security.
Instead of typing a password, you prove it's you the same way you unlock your phone: a fingerprint, a face scan, or a PIN.
When you set up a passkey for a website, your device creates two matching keys.
The private key stays locked on your device and never leaves it.
The public key is stored by the website.
When you sign in, the site sends a challenge that only your private key can answer, your device answers it once you confirm with your fingerprint or PIN, and you're in. The website never sees a password, because there isn't one. This approach comes from a standard called FIDO, which Apple, Google, and Microsoft all build on.
Why passkeys are harder to attack than passwords
A password is a secret you share with the website every time you log in, and that's exactly what attackers go after.
A passkey has no shared secret. That one difference fixes the biggest problems with passwords.
- They can't be phished. A passkey only works on the real website it was created for. Land on a convincing fake, and the passkey simply won't work, so there's nothing to hand over. That matters, because phishing is how most break-ins start.
- There's no password to steal in a breach. The website only keeps your public key, which is useless on its own. If the company gets hacked, there's no password list to grab and try on your other accounts.
- Nothing to reuse or forget. Each passkey is unique to one site and made automatically, so reused and weak passwords stop being a problem.
Older methods like text-message codes and app approval prompts can still be tricked out of people.
Where you can use passkeys already
Support has spread fast.
You can already sign in with passkeys to Microsoft, Google, and Apple accounts, plus a growing list of banks, password managers, and business tools.
Apple, Google, and Microsoft have built passkeys into their phones, laptops, and browsers, so the device in your pocket can already store and use them.
There are two types worth knowing.
A synced passkey is backed up to your Apple, Google, or Microsoft account, so it works across all your devices and you're covered if you lose one.
A device-bound passkey stays on a single device, like a physical security key you plug in, which is the most locked-down option and a common pick for sensitive accounts.
Should your business use them?
For most businesses, yes, and you can start small. There's no need to switch everything overnight or drop passwords on day one.
If you use Microsoft 365, passkeys are already available through Microsoft Entra.
Staff can sign in with a passkey stored in the Microsoft Authenticator app, a security key, or their own device. Google Workspace supports them too.
They're also just faster. Microsoft says signing in with a synced passkey takes about 3 seconds, against roughly 69 seconds for a password plus a traditional MFA code. Across a whole team, that adds up.
Here’s how you can start using passkeys:
- Turn passkeys on for your most sensitive accounts first: administrators, finance, and anyone who can move money or change systems.
- Let everyone else add a passkey as a faster, safer way to sign in, alongside their normal login at first.
- Make sure each person has a backup, like a second device or a security key, so a lost phone doesn't lock anyone out.
Your IT provider can switch this on and run the rollout so nobody gets locked out along the way.
What to watch out for
Passkeys aren't magic, and a few things are worth planning for.
- Account recovery. If someone loses the only device with their passkey and has no backup, they can get locked out. A synced passkey or a second registered device fixes this, but you have to set it up ahead of time.
- Not everything supports them yet. Support is growing fast, but some older systems and smaller vendors still rely on passwords, so you'll run both side by side for a while.
- Shared devices and logins. Passkeys are tied to a person and their device, so any shared computers or shared accounts need their own plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a passkey in simple terms?
It's a way to log in using your fingerprint, face, or PIN instead of a password. Your device proves it's you to the website, and no password is ever typed or stored.
Are passkeys safer than passwords?
Yes. They can't be phished, there's no password for a hacker to steal in a data breach, and there's nothing to reuse or forget. Security agencies like CISA recommend FIDO-based logins, which is what passkeys are, as the strongest widely available option.
What happens if I lose the device with my passkey?
If it was a synced passkey, it's backed up to your Apple, Google, or Microsoft account and still available on your other devices. If it was device-bound and you have no backup, you'd use a recovery method to get back in, which is why setting up a second passkey or device in advance matters.
Does Microsoft 365 support passkeys?
Yes. Passkeys are available through Microsoft Entra at no extra cost, including the free tier. Staff can use a passkey in the Microsoft Authenticator app, a security key, or their device.
Do passkeys replace multi-factor authentication?
A passkey can count as multi-factor authentication on its own. Unlocking it needs both your device (something you have) and your fingerprint, face, or PIN (something you are or know), so it covers two factors in one step and can replace the old password-plus-text-code routine.
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Aug 10, 2026 | Cybersecurity
Article Summary: Email spoofing is when a scammer sends a message that appears to come from your domain, often to trick your clients or staff into paying a fake invoice or changing banking details. Three DNS records (SPF, DKIM, and DMARC) prove that a message really came from you and tell receiving mail servers to reject the ones that didn't. The catch is that DMARC only protects you once it's set to "quarantine" or "reject," and a lot of businesses leave it on "none," which monitors but does not block.
Right now, with no special tools, someone could send an email that looks like it came from your company.
The From line would show your domain, your logo could be pasted into the message, and it could ask one of your clients to pay an invoice or update banking details. This is called email spoofing, and it is one of the most common ways fraud against your clients and suppliers begins.
There are three settings you can add to your domain that make this much harder to pull off.
They're called SPF, DKIM, and DMARC.
Most businesses have one or two of them set up and the third missing.
That's usually all it takes to let a spoofed email through. This post explains what each one does, the setting most businesses get wrong, and how to check your own domain.
Why scammers can send email in your company's name
Email was built in a more trusting time.
The system that delivers mail does not, on its own, check that the sender is who they claim to be. The From address on an email is about as trustworthy as the return address handwritten on an envelope. Anyone can write anything there, and the mail still gets delivered.
Spoofing takes advantage of that.
A scammer puts your domain in the From field, sends the message, and unless your domain is set up to prevent it, the receiving mail server has no reason to question it. The message lands in your client's inbox looking like it came from you. The UK's National Cyber Security Centre publishes anti-spoofing guidance for exactly this reason.
The three records that stop email spoofing
Three DNS records work together to prove an email really came from your domain. You add them once, at your domain registrar or DNS host, and receiving mail servers check them on every message you send.
SPF (Sender Policy Framework)<
SPF is a list of the mail servers allowed to send email for your domain, published as a DNS record. When a receiving server gets a message claiming to be from you, it checks whether the sending server is on that list. If a server that isn't on the list tries to send as your domain, SPF flags it.
DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail)
DKIM adds a tamper-proof signature to every message you send. Your mail server signs outgoing email with a private key, and the matching public key sits in your DNS. The receiving server checks the signature to confirm two things: the message really came from your domain, and nobody altered it along the way.
DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance)
DMARC ties the other two together and tells receiving servers what to do when a message fails the check. It also confirms that the domain in the visible From address matches the domain SPF and DKIM verified, which is the part that stops someone forging your exact address.
And it sends you reports showing who is sending email using your domain, including the senders who shouldn't be.
The DMARC setting most businesses get wrong
DMARC has three policy settings, and choosing the wrong one is a common mistake.
- p=none tells receiving servers to do nothing when a message fails. It only monitors and sends you reports. Your domain can still be spoofed.
- p=quarantine tells them to send failing messages to the junk folder.
- p=reject tells them to block failing messages before they ever arrive.
A lot of businesses set up DMARC at p=none, watch the reports come in, and never move past it. At p=none, you get reports but your domain still isn't protected.
Real protection only starts at quarantine or reject.
Microsoft's own guidance is to work toward p=reject once you've confirmed your legitimate mail passes.
What SPF, DKIM, and DMARC don't stop
These records stop someone from forging your exact domain.
There are two things they don't catch, though, and both are worth knowing about.
- Lookalike domains. A scammer can register a domain that resembles yours, like yourcompany-invoices.com, or yourcompany.co instead of .com, and send from that. Your records protect your real domain, not a different one the attacker owns.
- Display-name spoofing. The name shown in the From line can read "Your Company Accounts" while the real address behind it is a random Gmail account. DMARC checks the domain, not the display name.
For those, you still need the habits that catch any phishing attempt: check the full email address rather than just the display name, and verify any request to change payment details by calling a known number, not one from the email.
Why this matters even if you don't send bulk email
The first reason is protection.
These records stop scammers from impersonating your domain to your clients, your suppliers, and your own staff.
The second is deliverability.
The major mailbox providers now require these records from anyone sending in volume.
Since February 2024, Google and Yahoo have required bulk senders, meaning those sending more than 5,000 messages a day, to use SPF, DKIM, and DMARC.
Microsoft began applying similar requirements to Outlook.com and Hotmail in 2025, routing non-compliant high-volume mail to junk and then rejecting it.
Even below those thresholds, a domain with proper authentication is more likely to reach the inbox than the spam folder.
How to check and fix your domain
You can get a rough sense of where you stand without any technical work.
Several free DMARC and SPF checkers let you type in your domain and see which records exist. That tells you whether the records are present, though not whether they're configured correctly.
Fixing them properly is a job for whoever manages your IT or your domain.
The records live in your DNS, and a mistake can send your own legitimate email to spam, so the rollout is done in stages:
- Publish SPF and DKIM so all of your real mail sources are covered.
- Add DMARC at p=none and read the reports to confirm your legitimate mail passes.
- Move DMARC to p=quarantine, then to p=reject, once the reports look clean.
Microsoft recommends this same gradual path, starting at none and working toward reject, so you protect the domain without blocking your own mail on the way.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is email spoofing?
Email spoofing is when someone sends a message with your domain in the From address to make it look like it came from your company. It's used to trick your clients, suppliers, or staff into paying fake invoices, changing banking details, or handing over information.
What are SPF, DKIM, and DMARC in simple terms?
SPF is a list of servers allowed to send email for your domain. DKIM is a signature that proves a message came from you and wasn't altered. DMARC ties the two together, tells receiving servers to reject messages that fail, and reports who is sending email as your domain.
Does DMARC stop all email impersonation?
No. DMARC stops someone forging your exact domain. It does not stop lookalike domains (like yourcompany-invoices.com) or display-name spoofing, where the sender's name says your company but the address behind it is different. Those still need staff awareness and payment-verification habits.
Will setting up DMARC block my own emails?
Not if you roll it out gradually. Starting at p=none lets you watch the reports and confirm your legitimate mail passes before you move to quarantine and then reject. Skipping straight to reject without checking first is what causes problems.
Do I need these records if I don't send many emails?
Yes. They protect your domain from being spoofed regardless of how much email you send, and they help your messages reach the inbox. Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft now expect proper authentication, and mail without it is more likely to be filtered.
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Featured Image Credit
This Article has been Republished with Permission from The Technology Press.
