Overview

• Law enforcement and consumer protection agencies have observed a spike in sophisticated phishing targeting banks, streaming platforms, telecoms and tax authorities.
• LKA Niedersachsen confirmed that scammers are sending personalized postal letters with QR codes that redirect victims to fake bank login pages.
• Verbraucherzentrale has identified urgent phishing emails impersonating Spotify, Targobank, Volksbank and Consorsbank to steal payment and login data.
• The Bundeszentralamt für Steuern reiterated that genuine tax communications arrive by post and warned against responding to unsolicited email links.
• Authorities recommend not clicking links in unexpected messages, moving suspicious communications to spam, verifying via official apps or phone numbers, enabling two-factor authentication and reporting incidents immediately.