How to spot scams like Your Netflix Subscription Suspended Within 2 Days email scam
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on (updated)
What kind of scam is "Your Netflix Subscription Suspended Within 2 Days"?
After analyzing this email, we have concluded that it is a phishing email disguised as a letter regarding a Netflix subscription. Scammers behind this email attempt to trick recipients into opening a deceptive page (a fake Netflix website) and providing login credentials on it. This email must be ignored.
More about the "Your Netflix Subscription Suspended Within 2 Days" phishing campaign
According to this email, Netflix has suspended a subscription because a grace period has expired. It offers to reactivate the subscription for two days and resolve the payment issue within those two days. Otherwise, it will no longer be possible to use Netflix services. The email instructs to make the payment via the provided website ("Update my payment" hyperlink).
Clicking the provided hyperlink opens a fake Netflix website asking to sign in with an email address or phone number and a password. Scammers behind this email aim to steal Netflix accounts and could try to use the provided information to steal other accounts. Pretty often, scammers sell stolen accounts on the darknet.
| Name | Your Netflix Subscription Suspended Within 2 Days Email Scam |
| Threat Type | Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud |
| Fake Claim | Netflix subscription has been suspended |
| Disguise | Letter from the Netflix company |
| Related Domain | hallden[.]se 185.157.221.54 |
| Detection Names | Avira (Phishing), Combo Cleaner (Malware), Emsisoft (Phishing), Kaspersky (Phishing), Sophos (Phishing), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal) |
| Serving IP Address (hallden[.]se) | 185.157.221.54 |
| 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. |
| Malware Removal (Windows) | To eliminate possible malware infections, scan your computer with legitimate antivirus software. Our security researchers recommend using Combo Cleaner. |
Phishing emails in general
Most phishing emails contain a website link designed to open a deceptive page asking to provide sensitive information. They are disguised as official letters from legitimate companies, organizations, or other entities. Scammers use phishing emails (and pages) to obtain credit card details, login credentials, and other personal information.
More examples of phishing emails are "YOUR MAILBOX IS OUTDATED Email Scam", "Xerox Multifunction Printer Email Scam", and "SYSTEM NOTIFICATION Email Scam". Emails can be used not only to extract information but also to deliver malware.
How do spam campaigns infect computers?
Emails used to deliver malware have a malicious file attached to them or contain a malicious link. In both cases, threat actors aim to trick recipients into downloading and opening a malicious file (into executing malware by themselves). Most commonly used files to distribute malware are MS Office and PDF documents, JavaScript files, executables, and archive files.
How to avoid installation of malware?
Do not open attachments or links in irrelevant emails sent from unknown addresses. Opening them can cause computer infections. Use official pages to download software (and files). Do not trust other sources such as P2P networks, unofficial pages, third-party downloaders, etc.
Activate and update all installed programs with tools/functions provided by their official developers. Scan a computer for threats regularly. If you've already opened malicious attachments, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate infiltrated malware.
Text presented in the "Your Netflix Subscription Suspended Within 2 Days email scam" email letter:
Subject: Re:Your subscription suspended within 2 days.
Your Netflix subscription suspended within 2 days.Your grace period had expired. Your subscription has been suspended as we are still unable to process your payment.
We offer you a one-time reactivation of your subscription for 2 days. If your payment issue is not resolved during this reactivation period, you will not be able to use our Netflix services.
To reactivate your subscription and continue using our service, follow the steps below and resolve your payment issue.
Update my payment
Netflix team @Copyright-2022
Screenshot of the fake Netflix page:
Yet another example of Netflix subscription-themed spam email promoting a phishing site:
Text presented within:
Subject: Your suspension notification!
Dear user,We were unable to validate your billing information for the next billing cycle of your subscription therefore we'll suspend your membership if we do not receive a response from you within 48hours.
Obviously we'd love to have you back, simply update your details and continue to enjoy all the best TV shows & movies without interruption.
RESTART MEMBERSHIP
We're here to help if you need it. Visit the Help
Center for more info or contact us.—The Netflix Team
Screenshot of the promoted phishing site:
Yet another example of an email from "Your Netflix Subscription Suspended Within 2 Days" spam campaign:
Text presented within:
Subject: Action required #Ref8186974
NetfIix
Dear Valued Customer,we regret to inform you of some crucial news that requires immediate attention. Your Netflix subscription is on the verge of expiration, and we are unable to automatically renew it due to a declined payment from your bank.
To ensure uninterrupted access to your favorite shows and movies, it is vital that you take immediate action.
Please log in to your Netflix account and update your payment details as soon as possible.
To continue enjoying a wide range of movies, TV shows, and exclusive content, we kindly request you to manually confirm the payment of 14.99USD for your Netflix subscription by clicking on the link below:
pay now
Please note that failure to make the payment within 48 hours may result in the suspension of your account and loss of access to our platform.
Act now and secure your continued access to the world of entertainment that Netflix provides.
Best regards,
Netflix Support Team
Screenshot of the promoted phishing site:
Instant automatic malware removal:
Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced IT skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of malware. Download it by clicking the button below:
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Quick menu:
- What is Your Netflix Subscription Suspended Within 2 Days phishing campaign?
- 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?
You have received this email even if you are not signed up for Netflix. Scammers behind this campaign sent this email to all addresses in their database.
I have provided my personal information when tricked by this email, what should I do?
If you have provided your Netlix account login credentials, change all passwords immediately. Also, try contacting Netflix's help center.
I have downloaded and opened a file attached to an email used to deliver malware, is my computer infected?
If you have opened an executable file, your computer is probably infected. In other cases (if you have opened a malicious MS Office or other documents, archive files, etc.), your computer could not become infected without performing certain additional steps.
I have read the email but didn't open the attachment, is my computer infected?
No, an email cannot infect a computer. Computers get infected via malicious files.
Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections that were present in email attachment?
Yes, Combo Cleaner will remove malware from your computer. It can detect and remove almost all known malware. High-end malware usually hides deep in the system. Therefore, a computer must be scanned using a full scan to detect and eliminate high-end malware.
Outstanding!
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