Ignore the Chase Account has been locked email scam

What is the "Chase account has been locked" email scam?

It is common that scammers use email to trick recipients into providing them personal information (e.g., login credentials, social security numbers, credit card details). Their goal is to extract information that could be used to access bank, email, social media or other accounts, make unauthorized purchases, etc.

In order to give their emails legitimacy scammers pretend to be legitimate companies, organizations, or other entities. This particular email is disguised as a letter from Chase, an American national bank.

"Chase account has been locked" email scam overview

In most cases, scammers claim that they have noticed some suspicious activity or log-in attempts, there is an issue with the account, payment information, some billing problem, etc. Their main goal is to trick recipients into clicking the provided link and entering personal information on the opened website (or sending them that information via email).

Typically, websites that scammers look similar or nearly identical to official ones - they use the same logos, headers, etc. As mentioned in the introduction, scammers attempt to obtain information that could be used to access banking, social media, and other accounts (e.g., email addresses, usernames, passwords).

They often target credit card details (e.g., card holder name, account number, CVV code, expiry date) as well. When scammers succeed, they try to steal those accounts (or other personal information) so they could use them to send their scams or spam to other people, deliver malware, make fraudulent purchases, transactions, steal identities, etc.

It is common that they sell extracted data on a darkweb (sell it to other cybercriminals). In one way or another, it is strongly recommended to be sure that a received email is received from a legitimate company and not to click links or open attachments in suspicious emails.

Threat Summary:

Name	Chase Account Has Been Locked Email Scam
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Chase bank account has been locked due to suspicious login attempt
Disguise	Letter from Chase bank (a legitimate American bank)
Symptoms	Unauthorized online purchases, changed online account passwords, identity theft, illegal access of the 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.
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Scam email examples

There are many different email scams similar to this one. Some examples are "Rabobank Email Scam", "EuroLine Windows Exchange Email Scam", and "Standard Bank Financial Consultancy (SBFC) Email Scam". In most cases, scammers behind them seek to get access to personal accounts or extract information that could be used for other malicious purposes.

The main differences between these emails are the company names used to give them legitimacy and their subjects. It is important to mention that email can be used as a channel to deliver malware.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Recipients install malicious software via emails when they download and open malicious attachments or execute files downloaded via links. A couple of examples of files that cybercriminals use to deliver malware via their emails are RAR, ZIP, and other archive files PDF, Microsoft Office documents, executable files (like .exe), JavaScript files.

Typically, they claim that those files are invoices, purchase orders, or other important documents. It is noteworthy that MS Office documents infect computers only if recipients enable editing/content (macros commands) in them.

However, documents opened with Microsoft Office that was released before 2010 do not have the "Protected View" mode and install malware automatically.

How to avoid installation of malware?

It is highly advisable not to open files or links in received emails if they are not relevant and sent from a suspicious, unknown addresses. It is very common for emails of this kind are part of some malspam campaign that cybercriminals use to deliver malware (to trick recipients into opening malicious files designed to install malware).

Files, programs downloaded via third-party downloaders, unofficial web pages, Peer-to-Peer networks, free file hosting sites, etc., can be designed to install unwanted, malicious software. They should be downloaded from official pages and via direct links.

It is important to remember that third-party, unofficial installers can be malicious too. Furthermore, it is important to update and activate the operating system and any installed software using implemented functions or tools that the official developers have created/designed.

Users who use 'cracking' tools to activate or third-party updaters to update software tend to infect their computers - it is common that those tools are bundled with malware. Another reason not to use 'cracking' tools is that it is not legal to bypass software activation using such tools.

Additionally, it is advisable to run virus scans regularly and do it using a reputable and up-to-date antivirus or anti-spyware software. If you've already opened malicious attachments, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate infiltrated malware.

Appearance of the Chase account has been locked email (GIF):

Text presented in the Chase account has been locked email scam:

Subject: (********) Verify your account
    
Dear ##EMAIL##:

Your Chase Account has been locked for security reasons. We Detect your account login from unknown device and for your safety your account has been temporarily locked.

To resolve this issue, please verify your account information here  chase.com.

Thanks for being a loyal customer.

Sincerely,

The Chase Online Team
    

E-mail Security Information

E-mail intended for: ##EMAIL##

Please don't reply to this email. We can't read or respond to replies to this email. If you believe you’ve received this email in error,

ABOUT THIS MESSAGE:
This service email gives you updates and information about your Chase relationship.

This email was sent from an unmonitored mailbox,

Your privacy is important to us. See our online Security Center to learn how to protect your information.

Chase Privacy Operations, PO Box 659752, San Antonio, Texas 78265-9752.

JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Member FDIC

© 2021 JPMorgan Chase & Co.

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Quick menu:

• What is Chase Account Has Been Locked 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?

Thousands of users receive the same spam emails; they are not personal. Spam campaigns are large-scale operations so that cyber criminals could maximize their chances of a lot of tricking recipients.

I have provided my personal information when tricked by a spam email, what should I do?

If you've provided log-in credentials - immediately change the passwords of all possibly exposed accounts and contact their official support. If the disclosed information was of a different personal nature (e.g., ID card details, credit card numbers, etc.) - contact the corresponding authorities without delay.

I have read a spam email but didn't open the attachment, is my computer infected?

No, opening/reading a spam email is not dangerous. Infection processes are triggered when the attachments or links present in such emails are opened/clicked.

I have downloaded and opened a file attached to a spam email, is my computer infected?

If the opened file was an executable - then likely, yes - your device was infected. However, if it was a document (e.g., .doc, .pdf, etc.) - you could have avoided an infection. Document formats may require additional actions (e.g., allowing macro commands, etc.) - to start downloading/installing malware.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner can detect and eliminate nearly all of the known malware infections. Note that high-end malicious programs tend to hide deep in systems. Therefore, performing a full system scan is paramount.

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