How to identify scam emails like "I Want To Get Straight To The Point"
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on (updated)
What is "I Want To Get Straight To The Point"?
"I Want To Get Straight To The Point" is a spam campaign that scammers use to trick people into transferring money to them. They attempt to do this by claiming that they have recorded a compromising video or ordered drugs and weapons using the recipient's name and stolen personal information.
By sending this email, they try to blackmail people by threatening to proliferate the recorded video and causing other problems if their ransom demands are not met. We strongly recommend that you ignore this and other similar emails.
"I Want To Get Straight To The Point" spam campaign overview
Scammers who proliferate this email claim that they have placed malicious software on an adult website that was recently visited by the email recipient. They also claim that visiting this website caused installation of the aforementioned malware, thus allowing cyber criminals to have access to the user's computer.
They apparently used this program to record various user-system information such as IP address and social and email account details. Furthermore, they state that scammers used the recipient's computer to visit child pornography websites, have saved those videos, and recorded a video of the recipient via the webcam.
The cyber criminals go on to state that they used these videos to form another video: a combined (edited) video of the recipient watching the child pornography. They also claim that they used the recipient's name, created an account on Dream Market and Silk Road, and made illegal orders (weapons and drugs).
To remain silent about these supposed actions, scammers demand payment of $1000 within 72 hours using the Bitcoin wallet address provided. If not, the edited video will be sent to all stolen contacts, and information about illegal orders sent to the authorities.
If their demands are met, however, they promise to delete all videos, stolen information, and created accounts. None of these claims should be taken seriously. The best option is to simply ignore the "I Want To Get Straight To The Point" email.
| Name | I Want To Get Straight To The Point Email Scam |
| Threat Type | Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud |
| Fake Claim | Recipient's devices were infected and used to record compromising videos, which will be leaked to their contacts unless the sender is paid. |
| Cyber Criminal Cryptowallet Addresses | 1Dqyd1b4vcGHfGmmt5bh4gNDgtSkKEiLan, bc1qt0sfeqxu3u0qpc7q4fccqupn4fnh7s6xzr9wr7, bc1qleakkc5xxn0hp57qrzcfkw3tq2qqnrjxvd8v55, 1F9GvNwDyrFKujPrmgKsCc2TRp7AvHWict |
| Symptoms | Unauthorized online purchases, changed online account passwords, identity theft, illegal access of one's computer. |
| Distribution methods | Deceptive emails, rogue online pop-up ads, search engine poisoning techniques, misspelled domains. |
| Damage | Loss of sensitive private information, monetary loss, identity theft. |
| Malware Removal (Windows) | To eliminate possible malware infections, scan your computer with legitimate antivirus software. Our security researchers recommend using Combo Cleaner. |
Examples of similar campaigns
There are many similar spam campaigns including "I Know * Is One Of Your Pass", "THIS IS NOT A JOKE", "Yоu May Not Know Mе", and so on. Most emails of this type are sent to trick people into sending money to scammers.
Typically, scammers claim that they have infected computers, recorded videos, and so on, and threaten to harm people in various ways (to leak videos, photos, etc.) if they do not receive the ransom payment (usually via a cryptocurrency).
Many other spam campaigns infiltrate computers with high-risk computer infections such as LokiBot, TrickBot, Emotet, AZORult, and Adwind. These emails usually include attachments or website links that, once opened, download and install malicious programs.
Presented attachments are often executable files (.exe), archive files (ZIP, RAR, and others), PDF or Microsoft Office documents, etc. These attachments are used to infect computers with malware that steals personal details such as logins, passwords, banking account details, and so on.
Users with computers infected by these programs often encounter problems such as financial loss, issues with browsing safety, privacy, etc. Some of the malicious programs might be designed to proliferate other infections such as ransomware.
How do spam campaigns infect computers?
People are tricked into infecting their computers through spam campaigns - but only if they open the presented attachments or links. Therefore, spam campaigns cannot infect computers without the manual intervention of the email recipient. For instance, if the included attachment is a Microsoft Office document, if opened, it will demand permission to enable macro commands.
Enabling them gives permission for the attachment to download and install a malicious program. Similar rules apply to files of other types: archive files must first be extracted and their contents opened/executed, and so on.
How to avoid installation of malware?
If as email is irrelevant or sent from a suspicious, unknown address, and contains an attachment or website link, do not open it. Furthermore, avoid using third party downloaders or installers, unofficial/untrustworthy websites, peer-to-peer networks (torrents, eMule, etc.), and other similar sources to download files or software. Use official websites and direct download links.
Be cautious when installing software: check all available "Custom", "Advanced", and other similar settings of the installation/download set-up - set-ups can be used to distribute unwanted applications, which might cause computer infections. Update software using tools or implemented functions provided by official software developers.
Unofficial, third party updaters often download and install malicious programs rather than the expected updates. Do not use software cracking tools, since cyber criminals often use these tools to distribute malware.
Use Microsoft Office versions from 2010 or later - these have "Protected View" mode that prevents downloaded attachments from downloading and installing computer infections. If you have already opened malicious attachments, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate infiltrated malware.
Text presented in the "I Want To Get Straight To The Point" email message:
Subject: Your Happy new year gift you are compromised and exposed read now !!!
Hi,I want to get straight to the point without wasting each of our time recently while surfing one of porn xxx web-site your operating system is hacked by software program I carefully placed there,
while you were watching those video clips and having fun in my software set up malware on your personal computer now I have total access of the personal computer.While I found your computer idle I opened network connection details and made a video of your ip details, same way I made a video of yours all crucial documents, social accounts, your contacts , and email accounts, now I've got everything to prove that is you more over my malware sent me everything back so i have copies of them with me.
Later I visited few child porn web-sites saved those child porn video clips played on your computer and made a video of it , I save those videos on your computer in hidden format such way that's only I can access them (and police will once I will inform them if you don't do what I say exactly), after that I went to few blackmarket web-sites dream market and silk road (Google it and you will get it what is it) and I made an account on your name there..
Now I got 3 recordings of yours
1) Watching and downloading child porno (criminal offence)
2) Made you member of infamous Dream Market and Silk Road (thinking to ordering some drugs and weapons on your name soon..)
3) Your ip , important documents , Contacts, Social Details , Geo Graphical details by Google map and your ipNow you have 2 choices
First dismiss this e mail and do not act then I simply go on after 72 hours and send those videos of you enjoying child porno to your all contacts, then i order drugs and firearms on your name and send details to authorities to allow them to arrest you and trust me they will..it will destroy your relationship, career, social life etc.
Second option is to give me $1000 and think it's as a donation and when I get the amount I will delete those videos and records which I have..and you can continue your normal life like this never happened
You will make the payment through Bitcoin (if you do not know this, search 'how to get bitcoin in Google').
Btc address to send funds to: 1Dqyd1b4vcGHfGmmt5bh4gNDgtSkKEiLan its case sensitive so copy paste it
If you are planning to consult with law enforcement officials feel free I already taken care of it this email cannot be trace back to me , by the way I'm not asking much to be honest and you can simply send the funds and lead a normal life
also for your information I placed a call back pixel in this email so if u reading this and ignoring reminding u I know and your time is ticking after 7 days I will send those videos to your contacts and police officers
if however u send me money I will wipe off everything from your end and mine along with delete the account from dream market and silk road too..Lets the game start now...
Another example of an email from "I Want To Get Straight To The Point" spam campaign:
Text presented within:
Subject: For your own safety, I highly recommend reading this email.
Well, hello, friend.
Let's get straight to the point.
We've known each other for a while, at least I know.You can call me "Big Brother" or "The All-Seeing Eye.
A few months ago, I gained access to your device, including your internet history and webcam.
And I captured some footage of you masturbating while watching a highly controversial "adult" movie.
It's unlikely that you'd want your family, colleagues, or contacts to watch the videos you're enjoying. Especially if it's your favorite genre. ( We both Know ! )
We also plan to release these movies on many websites, but they will become so popular that it will be physically impossible to download them anywhere.
How did you do that?
Ignoring Internet security made it easy for me to take over.
you allowed my ransomware to your device. after that i gained remote access to it.
After infecting one device, I was able to access all other devices and your WiFi network without any issue.I'll just lay out a condition for you now. A little payment for you know what.
Transfer Exactly 2,000 USD to my bitcoin wallet.
WALLET DETAILS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
BTC WALLET: (bc1qt0sfeqxu3u0qpc7q4fccqupn4fnh7s6xzr9wr7)
WALLET DETAILS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Once the transfer is confirmed, I will remotely remove the virus from your devices, the data that i have will be permanently deleted and you will never hear from me again.
( You Have My Word )Yes, it's a very tiny amount to pay to avoid ruining your reputation in the eyes of people who believe you to be a good person based on your interaction with them using messages. because i've been watching everythin.
You have 48 hours - I'll be notified as soon as you open this email, and from then on it's a countdown.
If you've never dealt with cryptocurrency before, it's super easy - search for "crypto exchange" "MoonPay" "BitPay" ,or else you can use cash to buy using "Bitcoin ATM".
Here's what you shouldn't do:
Don't reply to my email. It was sent from a disposable e-mail account.
Don't report me to law enforcement. as soon as I notice such activity, it will automatically lead to the release of all of your data.
Do not attempt to reinstall your system or factory reset your device.
First of all, I already have the video and all your data, and secondly, as I already said, I have remote access to all your devices and as soon as I notice such an attempt, it will lead to irreversible consequences.
Remember that crypto-addresses are anonymous, so you won't be able to figure me out from my wallet.
Anyway, let's make this a win-win situation.
I always keep my word, unless I'm being tricked.
Advice for the future: take more seriously your security on the Internet. Also regularly change passwords and set up multi-factor authorization on all your accounts.
Yet another example of an email from "I Want To Get Straight To The Point" spam campaign:
Text presented within:
Subject: For your own safety, I strongly recommend reading this email.
Okay, hey there, my friend.
I'll get straight to the point. We've known each other for a time, or at least I have.
You can call me Big Brother or The All-Seeing Eye.
A few months back, I obtained access to your device, including your internet history and webcam. And I captured some footage of you jerking off to highly contentious "adult" films. It's unlikely that you'd want your family, coworkers, and contacts to watch videos of you enjoying yourself, especially if it's in your favorite genre. Additionally, I'll post these movies on a lot of websites, and they'll become so popular that it will be physically impossible to take them down from anywhere.
How did I accomplish that? Your disregard for Internet security allowed me to take over with ease. which gave me remote control access to your device's entire info. I was able to access all the other devices and your wifi network without any trouble after infecting one.
I'll just lay out a condition for you now. A little payment for you know what.
Transfer Exactly 2,000 USD to my bitcoin wallet.
BTC WALLET: (bc1qleakkc5xxn0hp57qrzcfkw3tq2qqnrjxvd8v55)
( WARNING : SEND THE EXACT AMOUNT ABOVE OR ELSE THE DATA WILL BE PUBLISHED WITHIN 48 HOURS ! )
Once the transfer is confirmed, I will remotely remove the virus from your devices, the data that i have will be permanently deleted and you will never hear from me again.
Yes, it's a very tiny amount to pay to avoid ruining your reputation in the eyes of people who believe you to be a good person based on your interaction with them using messages. because i've been watching everythin.
You have 48 hours - I'll be notified as soon as you open this email, and from then on it's a countdown. If you've never dealt with cryptocurrency before, it's super easy - type "crypto exchange" "MoonPay" "BitPay" ,or else you can use cash to buy it using "Bitcoin ATM".
Here's what you shouldn't do: Don't reply to my email. It was sent from a disposable e-mail account. Don't report me to law enforcement. as soon as I notice such activity, it will automatically lead to the release of all of your data. Do not attempt to reinstall your system or factory reset your device. First of all, I already have the video and all your data, and secondly, as I already said, I have remote access to all your devices and as soon as I notice such an attempt, it will lead to irreversible consequences. Remember that crypto-addresses are anonymous, so you won't be able to figure me out from my wallet. Anyway, let's make this a win-win situation. I always keep my word, unless I'm being tricked. Advice for the future: take more seriously your security on the Internet. Also regularly change passwords and set up multi-factor authorization on all your accounts.
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Quick menu:
- What is I Want To Get Straight To The Point spam?
- Types of malicious emails.
- How to spot a malicious email?
- What to do if you fell for an email scam?
Types of malicious emails:
Phishing Emails
Most commonly, cybercriminals use deceptive emails to trick Internet users into giving away their sensitive private information, for example, login information for various online services, email accounts, or online banking information.
Such attacks are called phishing. In a phishing attack, cybercriminals usually send an email message with some popular service logo (for example, Microsoft, DHL, Amazon, Netflix), create urgency (wrong shipping address, expired password, etc.), and place a link which they hope their potential victims will click on.
After clicking the link presented in such email message, victims are redirected to a fake website that looks identical or extremely similar to the original one. Victims are then asked to enter their password, credit card details, or some other information that gets stolen by cybercriminals.
Emails with Malicious Attachments
Another popular attack vector is email spam with malicious attachments that infect users' computers with malware. Malicious attachments usually carry trojans that are capable of stealing passwords, banking information, and other sensitive information.
In such attacks, cybercriminals' main goal is to trick their potential victims into opening an infected email attachment. To achieve this goal, email messages usually talk about recently received invoices, faxes, or voice messages.
If a potential victim falls for the lure and opens the attachment, their computers get infected, and cybercriminals can collect a lot of sensitive information.
While it's a more complicated method to steal personal information (spam filters and antivirus programs usually detect such attempts), if successful, cybercriminals can get a much wider array of data and can collect information for a long period of time.
Sextortion Emails
This is a type of phishing. In this case, users receive an email claiming that a cybercriminal could access the webcam of the potential victim and has a video recording of one's masturbation.
To get rid of the video, victims are asked to pay a ransom (usually using Bitcoin or another cryptocurrency). Nevertheless, all of these claims are false - users who receive such emails should ignore and delete them.
How to spot a malicious email?
While cyber criminals try to make their lure emails look trustworthy, here are some things that you should look for when trying to spot a phishing email:
- Check the sender's ("from") email address: Hover your mouse over the "from" address and check if it's legitimate. For example, if you received an email from Microsoft, be sure to check if the email address is @microsoft.com and not something suspicious like @m1crosoft.com, @microsfot.com, @account-security-noreply.com, etc.
- Check for generic greetings: If the greeting in the email is "Dear user", "Dear @youremail.com", "Dear valued customer", this should raise suspiciousness. Most commonly, companies call you by your name. Lack of this information could signal a phishing attempt.
- Check the links in the email: Hover your mouse over the link presented in the email, if the link that appears seems suspicious, don't click it. For example, if you received an email from Microsoft and the link in the email shows that it will go to firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0... you shouldn't trust it. It's best not to click any links in the emails but to visit the company website that sent you the email in the first place.
- Don't blindly trust email attachments: Most commonly, legitimate companies will ask you to log in to their website and to view any documents there; if you received an email with an attachment, it's a good idea to scan it with an antivirus application. Infected email attachments are a common attack vector used by cybercriminals.
To minimise the risk of opening phishing and malicious emails we recommend using Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows.
Example of a spam email:
What to do if you fell for an email scam?
- If you clicked on a link in a phishing email and entered your password - be sure to change your password as soon as possible. Usually, cybercriminals collect stolen credentials and then sell them to other groups that use them for malicious purposes. If you change your password in a timely manner, there's a chance that criminals won't have enough time to do any damage.
- If you entered your credit card information - contact your bank as soon as possible and explain the situation. There's a good chance that you will need to cancel your compromised credit card and get a new one.
- If you see any signs of identity theft - you should immediately contact the Federal Trade Commission. This institution will collect information about your situation and create a personal recovery plan.
- If you opened a malicious attachment - your computer is probably infected, you should scan it with a reputable antivirus application. For this purpose, we recommend using Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows.
- Help other Internet users - report phishing emails to Anti-Phishing Working Group, FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, National Fraud Information Center and U.S. Department of Justice.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Why did I receive this email?
Scammers send out mass emails hoping to find vulnerable targets who might fall for their tricks. They often use tactics like phishing or impersonation to deceive recipients. Scammers obtain email addresses through various means, such as purchasing lists from data brokers, scraping websites, or exploiting security breaches.
I have provided my personal information when tricked by this email, what should I do?
Contact authorities immediately, change passwords (if necessary) and be cautious of further communication or demands.
I have downloaded and opened a malicious file attached to this an, is my computer infected?
The risk of your computer getting infected depends on the kind of files you engage with. Executable files (.exe) or script files (.js, .vbs) infected with malware present a high risk when activated. However, documents or multimedia files usually carry a lower risk of infection.
Was my computer actually hacked and does the sender have any information?
Most probably, your computer was not hacked, but the sender may have some of your information, possibly from leaked databases.
I have sent cryptocurrency to the address presented in such email, can I get my money back?
Unfortunately, cryptocurrency transactions are irreversible, so it is unlikely you will be able to retrieve the funds sent to a scammer. It is essential to be cautious and verify the legitimacy of requests before sending any cryptocurrency.
I have read the email but did not open the attachment, is my computer infected?
Merely opening an email poses no risk. As a rule, computers cannot be infected via email unless malicious attachments or links are opened.
Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections that were present in email attachment?
Combo Cleaner can detect and remove nearly all known malware infections. Since sophisticated malware often conceals itself deeply within the system, conducting a full system scan is important to remove hidden malware.
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