Phishing email examples are the fastest way to teach staff what an attack actually looks like, because people recognise a lure they have already seen far more reliably than one they have only read a definition of. This guide walks through eight phishing email patterns that Australian workplaces see repeatedly, the red flags in each, and how to turn them into simulations your team practises on.
TL;DR
- Eight patterns cover most of what lands in Australian inboxes: invoice fraud, tax refund, password expiry, shared file, delivery notice, executive request, payroll change and MFA prompt follow-ups.
- Every lure relies on the same three levers: urgency, authority and a link or attachment.
- Teach staff to check the sender domain, hover the link and verify any money or password request through a second channel.
- Practising on realistic simulations beats reading about phishing once a year.
- Reporting a suspicious email should be as easy as deleting it.
Why examples work better than definitions
The Australian Signals Directorate received more than 84,700 cybercrime reports in 2024-25, an average of one every six minutes (ASD Annual Cyber Threat Report 2024-25). Staff are the last filter between those attempts and your business. A person who has seen a fake invoice before spots the next one in seconds; a person who has only been told that phishing exists does not.
Eight phishing email examples
1. The invoice awaiting approval
The email appears to come from an accounting tool such as Xero, with a subject like Invoice 48291 awaiting your approval. The link leads to a fake login page. Red flags: a sender domain that is close to, but not exactly, the real one; an invoice number you do not recognise; pressure to act today.
2. The tax refund
A message claiming to be from the ATO says you are owed a refund and asks you to click a link and enter bank details. Red flags: the ATO does not ask you to confirm bank details through an emailed link; the greeting is generic; the link domain is not an official government address.
3. The password expiry notice
A notice from IT or from Google or Microsoft says your password expires in 72 hours. Red flags: real expiry reminders rarely threaten account loss; the link goes to a lookalike sign-in page.
4. The shared file
An email says a colleague or the CEO has shared a file called Staff-Bonuses. Curiosity does the work here. Red flags: an unexpected share, a file name designed to tempt, and a sign-in prompt after clicking.
5. The delivery notice
A courier says a parcel could not be delivered and asks for a small redelivery fee. Red flags: you are not expecting a parcel; the payment page asks for full card details.
6. The executive request
A short email from a senior leader asks you to buy gift cards or process an urgent payment and not to call. Red flags: secrecy, urgency and a display name that does not match the real address.
7. The payroll change
A staff member appears to ask HR to update their bank details before the next pay run. Red flags: a free webmail address, a change close to payday, and no verification call.
8. The MFA prompt follow-up
An email or message tells you to approve a sign-in request you did not start. Red flags: approving an unexpected prompt hands the attacker access. Staff should deny it and report it.
The three levers every lure pulls
Every example above combines urgency (act today), authority (a boss, a regulator, a vendor) and a link or attachment that does the damage. Teach staff to pause when they feel all three at once. A two-second check of the sender domain and a call to a known number for anything involving money or passwords stops most attacks.
Turn the examples into practice
- Show the example first. A short story-driven lesson that dramatises one lure teaches the red flags in context. Cyber Aware's security awareness training uses animated stories followed by a quiz for exactly this.
- Simulate it. Cyber Aware's phishing simulations include templates for invoice fraud, ATO tax refunds, password expiry and file-share lures, so staff practise on realistic versions.
- Remediate, do not shame. Anyone who clicks is enrolled into a short follow-up lesson automatically.
- Make reporting easy. A report-phish button turns every suspicious email into a signal.
- Track the trend. Human risk reporting rolls clicks, reports and overdue lessons into one score per person.
FAQ
What are the most common phishing email examples? Invoice fraud, fake tax refunds, password expiry notices, shared-file lures and executive impersonation make up most of what workplaces see.
How can I tell a phishing email from a real one? Check the exact sender domain, hover over links before clicking and confirm any request involving money or credentials through a second channel.
Should staff forward phishing emails to colleagues as a warning? No. They should use the report button or send it to IT so the team can act on it.
How often should we run phishing simulations? Monthly or quarterly, varying the lure each time. A steady cadence beats one annual test.
One last thing
Take the last suspicious email your team received and turn it into a lesson this week. Real examples from your own inbox are the ones people remember.