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Avira warns against a phishing wave on the German banks Volksbank and Sparkasse
Fri, 09 January 2009

Cyber criminals are currently spreading phishing mails in large quantities with the intention to steal the access data of customers from Sparkasse and Volksbank

Tettnang, 9 January 2009 – The German IT security specialists at Avira are warning against a phishing attack against the customers of Volksbank and Sparkasse.

The phishing emails have subject lines like “Volksbanken Raiffeisenbanken: Official message “, they are written in bad German and ask the user to fill in an online form (“We ask you to fill in the customer form of Volksbank Raiffeisenbanken, to guarantee you have stated your personal data correctly.)

The phishing email
Illustration 1: The phishing email

Attempting to get access data such as the account number or the VR-NetKey and the relevant password or PIN, the cyber criminals also try to get a list of unused transaction numbers the user enters manually to perform transactions.

The Volksbank phishing page
Illustration 2: Volksbank phishing page

The phishing page from the Sparkasse
Illustration 3: The phishing page from Sparkasse

Anyone who receives an email as described above should delete it and never click on the links. The banks have never sent around emails of this description directly. Furthermore, all online banking users should always enter their bank’s web address manually in the web browser’s address line or click on a personal bookmarked link.

All users who have a Avira security solutions - Avira AntiVir Premium or Avira Premium Security Suite are protected against these phishing attacks by Mailguard and Webguard. The Mailguard marks the emails as phishing and WebGuard blocks them so there is no way to access the phishing pages.


About Avira

Avira is a leading worldwide provider of self-developed protection solutions for professional and private use. The company belongs to the pioneers in this sector with over twenty years experience.

The protection experts have numerous company locations throughout Germany and cultivate partnerships in Europe, Asia and America. Avira has more than 180 employees at their main office in Tettnang near Lake Constance and is one of the largest employers in the region. There are around 250 people employed worldwide whose commitment is continually being confirmed by awards. A significant contribution to protection is the Avira AntiVir Personal which is being used by private users a million times over.

Well-known listed companies as well as educational organizations and public employers belong to the list of national and international customers. In addition to the protection of the virtual environment, Avira cares for more protection and safety in the real world by promotion of the Auerbach Foundation. The Auerbach Foundation of the founder of the company promotes common and social projects as well as the arts, culture and science.