Google is pushing ahead with a test to shorten URLs in Chrome’s address bar to help users avoid malicious websites. The company is experimenting with a new feature that will clip a URL domain down to just the basic address information.
Google is pushing ahead with a test to shorten URLs in Chrome’s address bar to help users avoid malicious websites. The company is experimenting with a new feature that will clip a URL domain down to just the basic address information.
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It is great to see Google doing more to prevent consumers falling for fake domains, as they can be very dangerous. There are no rules preventing anyone from registering an online domain that looks just like a legitimate brand’s domain name and creating a lookalike that resembles the original. Subtle differences can easily go unnoticed, fooling unsuspecting customers who will simply enter their credentials as usual. This is definitely a problem for UK businesses and recent Mimecast research found that have identified or been made aware of up to 10 web (or email) spoofing attack using their organisation\’s domains or lookalike domains in the last year, with 54% expecting this to increase in the next 12 months. Despite this, only 33% of UK respondents say brand exploitation protection (from domain spoofing) is included in their organisation\’s cyber resilience strategy. This needs to change quickly if UK businesses are to remain safe from website spoofing, as we cannot just rely on consumers to carry the responsibility alone.