No News is Google News as Gmail users Hit by ‘Sophisticated’ Phishing Scam
A highly sophisticated phishing attack is targeting millions of Gmail users—and Google isn’t sounding the alarm. Despite the scope and severity of the threat, the tech giant has offered no clear warning, issued no prominent alerts, and made no move to protect users or stop the spread.
Why?
Dr. Katherine Albrecht, privacy advocate, bestselling author, and tech ethics expert, is available for interviews to explain the real reason Google is staying quiet: it’s a massive conflict of interest—and a pattern of silence we’ve seen before.
“Google makes billions by harvesting personal information. So when a phishing scam hijacks its own systems to do the same thing, they’re in no rush to stop it,” says Dr. Albrecht. “It’s corporate complicity by omission.”
The recent phishing campaign, detailed by the Daily Mail, mimics Google Drive notifications and targets Gmail users—tricking them into clicking malicious links. It’s the kind of breach that should dominate headlines and trigger emergency responses.
Instead? Crickets.
Most Americans get their news and alerts through Google—yet the company has done little to make this story visible. The result? Millions remain vulnerable, while Google avoids accountability.
Dr. Albrecht can speak to:
- Why Google’s business model makes it uniquely vulnerable—and reluctant to act
- How the centralization of digital communication puts everyone at risk
- Why tech companies suppress news that could hurt their brand or bottom line
- What consumers can do to protect themselves in the absence of corporate safeguards
This isn’t just about one scam. It’s about who controls the flow of information—and what happens when that power is used to protect profit instead of people.
Dr. Albrecht is available for interviews, op-eds, and expert commentary.
Relevant Article(s):
OPTIONAL Q&A
- Why do you think Google hasn’t issued a major warning about this phishing attack, even though it targets millions of their users?
- Is there a conflict of interest at play when the same company that profits from user data is also responsible for protecting it?
- Most people get their news from Google—what happens when Google suppresses critical stories like this one?
- Do you believe Google has a responsibility, ethically or legally, to alert users when their platforms are being weaponized like this?
- How is this kind of phishing scam different—or more dangerous—than traditional email scams of the past?
- Could Google’s silence be seen as a form of passive complicity in the spread of these attacks?
- What does this incident tell us about the larger problem of centralized control over both information and communication platforms?
- What can everyday users do to protect themselves when big tech won’t take action—or even tell them the truth?
ABOUT DR. KATHERINE ALBRECHT…
Albrecht is an internationally known privacy researcher, consumer advocate, bestselling author, and nationally syndicated radio host. She co-founder of the private email company StartMail that makes powerful encryption tools available for regular people. Katherine holds a Doctorate in Human Development in Psychology and Consumer Education from Harvard University, has studied at the MIT Media lab, and received a Masters from Harvard in Technology, Innovation, and Education.
Katherine has authored pro-consumer legislation, testified before the Federal Trade Commission, provided expert testimony to numerous state legislatures, and was appointed as a consumer technology expert by NH Governor John Lynch. She has advised the European Commission and been invited to speak before advocacy groups, bar associations, and government assemblies around the world. She co-authored the bestselling book Spychips, which exposed corporate plans to misuse RFID technology and brought about much-needed consumer privacy reforms across the retail industry, and she was a plaintiff in a pivotal first amendment case guaranteeing activists the right to free speech in the nation’s convention centers (Albrecht v. Metropolitan Pier Exposition Auth.).
Katherine has granted over 2,000 media interviews with news outlets around the globe, including CBS, NBC, CNN, NPR, Fox News, Good Morning America, the BBC, Wired Magazine, The New York Times, and hundreds more. Katherine has written articles for numerous publications, including Scientific American and the Denver Law Review, and she is a former Associate Editor of the IEEE Technology & Society Magazine.
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