Typosquatting

Typosquatting is a form of cyberattack in which bad actors capitalize on mistyped URLs to trick unsuspecting users. It usually involves directing people to malicious websites with the look and feel of their legitimate counterparts. Users then provide sensitive information such as login details to the fake websites. The typo in typosquatting indicates that the attack is a result of mistakes that people make when entering the URLs.

Typosquatting affects both the public and the business community. In the crypto sector, bad actors can mimic popular exchanges and register them under incorrect domain names that are almost identical to the original URLs.

Typosquatting usually relies on typos, spelling errors, alternative spelling, wrong domain endings, and hyphenated domains to gain an advantage over users. People can protect themselves by bookmarking the websites they frequently visit, avoiding opening attachments or clicking links from unverified sources, and using search engines instead of typing domain names.