A new study by Expert Insights has revealed that 9,060 searches related to phishing concerns and email legitimacy occur monthly, with ‘how to spot phishing emails,’ ‘is this email legit,’ and ‘is this a real email’ each generating 2,400 monthly searches, based on an analysis of Google Search trends.
- Over 9,060 searches related to phishing and email legitimacy occur each month, with ‘how to spot phishing emails,’ ‘is this email legit,’ and ‘is this a real email’ each seeing 2,400 monthly searches, a Google Search trend analysis by Expert Insights suggests.
- People search keywords such as ‘what to do if i clicked on a phishing link’ after mistakenly clicking a link in an email, and ‘is this email legit,’ ‘is this a real email,’ or ‘is this email fake’ to verify email authenticity.
- United States leads with 48.4% of searches, with an even split between mobile (48.9%) and desktop (50.3%) devices.
The research, conducted by the cybersecurity review platform Experts Insights, analyzed search data from Google Keyword Planner to assess how often people seek help after clicking potentially malicious email links, how frequently they look for ways to identify phishing attempts, and how often they question email legitimacy.
The findings indicate significant concern about phishing, with ‘what to do if i clicked on a phishing link’ generating 1,720 monthly searches and ‘clicked on a phishing link’ reaching 720 monthly queries. Proactive searches for ‘how to spot phishing emails’ hit 2,400 monthly searches, showing strong interest in prevention. Similarly, the queries ‘is this email legit’ and ‘is this a real email’ each record 2,400 monthly searches, while ‘is this email fake’ adds 140 searches, reflecting widespread uncertainty about email authenticity.
Geographic differences show the United States leading with 48.4% of searches, followed by the United Kingdom at 16.0%, Canada at 6.4%, Australia at 3.8%, and India at 3.3%. Within the US, the data also shows an almost even split between devices, with mobile searches accounting for 48.9%, desktop searches at 50.3%, and tablet searches at 0.7%.
Joel Witts, Content Director of Expert Insights, commented: “These numbers show that email phishing continues to be a major issue for thousands of people. For individuals, continue to be vigilant. Cybercriminals are using AI to create highly realistic phishing emails and landing pages at scale. For businesses, make sure to invest in robust email security to keep harmful emails out of your user inboxes. Hopefully the guides and shortlists at Expert Insights will help you to find the right platform.”
Laura Iannini added: “Our best advice if you click on a phishing email is not to panic. Most of the time they are trying to trick you into putting in your username and password. If you did do this, change your passwords right away. If not, go and switch on two factor authentication in your account settings, this prevents most breaches. If you think there was a malicious download, use an AV software to do a device scan and follow their tips to resolve any issues.”
The top phishing-related searches globally
| Rank | Keyword | Avg. Monthly Volume |
| 1 | how to spot phishing emails | 2,400 |
| 2 | is this email legit | 2,400 |
| 3 | is this a real email | 2,400 |
| 4 | what to do if i clicked on a phishing link | 1,720 |
| 5 | clicked on a phishing link | 720 |
| 6 | is this email fake | 140 |
Top regions for phishing-related searches
| Rank | Region | Percentage of Searches |
| 1 | United States | 48.4% |
| 2 | United Kingdom | 16.0% |
| 3 | Canada | 6.4% |
| 4 | Australia | 3.8% |
| 5 | India | 3.3% |
Device breakdown for phishing-related searches
| Device | Percentage of Searches |
| Desktop | 50.3% |
| Mobile | 48.9% |
| Tablet | 0.7% |
Expert Insights Phishing Resources
For more resources on preventing phishing attacks, check out these guides from Expert Insights:
