PhishAR
Phish-proofing user authentication by harnessing the power of AI and AR

Year
3
Project
PhishAR
University
University of Oxford
URL
Status
Spinout
Location
Oxford
Funding
Post-programme funding attracted
Phishing attacks are present in more than a third of enterprise compromises and 83% of surveyed companies reported being exposed to phishing attacks in 2018. One potential countermeasure, often mandated by the GDPR, is two-factor authentication (2FA). However, neither using the existing smartphone applications nor receiving codes via email or SMS provide protection against the latest rapidly increasing group of phishing attacks that specifically target 2FA users.
PhishAR, is the only phishing-resistant second-factor authenticator that runs on smartphones. The immersive intelligence of PhishAR uses machine learning and computer vision capabilities of modern smartphones to only provide the necessary log-in credentials if the user is visiting a legitimate website. Otherwise, as soon as a single individual gets exposed to new phishy content, PhishAR withholds their credentials and reports suspicious activity to the central AI system, thus allowing the organization to promptly neutralize a nascent attack campaign.
After patenting the core technology and developing a fully functioning implementation for Android smartphones, PhishAR is raising a seed investment and spinning-out from the University of Oxford.
JOINED: Techstars – Barclays Accelerator