Hackers Hide Phishing Behind Trusted Senders, Redirect Chains and URL Obfuscation

Cybercriminals are increasingly using trusted-looking senders, multi-stage redirect chains, and obfuscated URLs to bypass email security tools, according to Virus Bulletin’s Q3 2026 VBSpam test. The 16-day test examined 11 publicly tested email-security products against 103,969 emails, including 103,380 spam messages. While leading products recorded phishing detection rates near 100%, the test showed that attackers are moving away from malicious attachments and using…

Diamond Model