Phishing scams are when an email is sent to someone that includes a link which once you click will steal your usernames, passwords, and any other information that is in your computer. These scams can be incredibly dangerous because with this information the scammer can start credit cards in your name, steal your business, and just do bad things in your name.
https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/state/washington/article294423244.html
In this scenario, people were receiving text messages from what claimed to be the Washington State Department of Transportation that told them a specific amount of money to pay. These texts were not actually from the State, and were from scammers who would take the money sent to them.
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/coffee-lovers-warned-of-starbucks/
People in the UK were receiving emails pretending to be Starbucks telling the people that if they send their information, they would receive a "Starbucks Lovers Coffee Box." This was a lie, and the real senders weren't starbucks. The malicious links would steal people's personal and financial information or could download malware onto personal devices.
These scams would have been implemented to the exercises we did in class by someone telling someone to take a string which they say connects to something, while it connects to something else entirely.