US Patent 7802298 Methods and apparatus for protecting computers against phishing attacks

In one embodiment, a client computer is protected from phishing attacks using a sensitive state monitor and a phishing site detector. The sensitive state monitor may detect reception of a web page displayed in a web browser of the client computer. The sensitive state monitor may determine whether or not the web page is a sensitive web page, such as those used to receive user confidential information. When the sensitive state monitor determines that the web page is sensitive, the sensitive state monitor may ask the user to confirm that the web page is indeed sensitive. After user confirmation, the sensitive state monitor may invoke the phishing site detector, which may determine whether or not the website serving the web page is a phishing site.