Effectiveness of Certificate Transparency (CT) Check and Other Datapoints in Countering Phishing Attacks

Phishing, a form of social engineering attack, has been present for more than two decades. Despite efforts by academic researchers and technology companies to combat this threat, statistics indicate that Phishing attacks are increasing. Cyber criminals target unsuspecting victims using Phishing attacks, particularly as critical businesses like banks expand their online offerings. This paper assesses academic and technological strategies to mitigate Phishing attacks, such as Certificate Transparency (CT). However, practical analysis of CT reveals that bad actors can evade CT checks by using wild card SSL certificates, which are readily available. The paper presents findings on the limitations of CT and how attackers can bypass it. For real-time analysis, CT monitoring implemented by Facebook is leveraged. The results pave the way for future research into anti-phishing measures.