What is Pagejacking
We can say that Pagejacking is a technique used to redirect you to another website different from what you expect to get. That is, you click on a link to go to a website, but you actually end up on a different one. You can arrive at a page that you will quickly see is not what you expected, but sometimes you can also end up on a website that is quite similar and it is difficult to differentiate.
Basically the name can be translated in Spanish as website hijacking. The main objective of the attackers is to steal customers to a web page. They are going to take visitors to a different site where they can end up buying something or just generating income by visiting the page.
They can use images, texts and other means to impersonate the identity of the original website. Sometimes they do it so well that it’s really hard to tell the difference between the real page and the fake one. That is where the real problem begins. They are not only going to affect that website, but the visitors as well. They can get to steal information, passwords or strain some type of virus. At the end of the day we are going to enter a fake websitecontrolled by the attackers.
It is not a new threat, far from it; Pagejacking has actually been around for many years. However, we are now seeing a significant increase. Cyber criminals seem to take advantage of this type of threat to redirect people to pages controlled by them.
Really anyone can be at risk. You may end up on a fake page even without knowing it. Although you’ll usually spot it, sometimes it’s so well done that it’s hard.
What to do to avoid problems
So what should you do to avoid trouble and stay safe? The most important is always check the websites very well which you access. You can look at the URL, the general appearance, the text, images… You will always be able to detect errors or anything that makes you doubt.
Especially when logging in, making a payment or downloading a file, it is important that you check that you are really in the legit website and not in a scam. Avoid basic mistakes that can negatively affect your privacy.
It is also important that you use safe programs. Especially the browser, which after all is what you are going to use to enter web pages, it needs to be good. There are many options, but we recommend that you use a guarantee browser. For example Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are good options.
Of course, something that cannot be missing is having a good anti virus. Some options like Windows Defender or Avast will help you avoid attacks of all kinds when browsing. Keeping the system updated will also help correct vulnerabilities that could put you in danger.
In short, as you can see, Pagejacking is an important problem that can compromise your security. Being protected and not making mistakes when browsing is essential to keep your data safe and the proper functioning of the system.
