How to spot scam emails like "Used Memory Account Storage"

What kind of email is "Used Memory Account Storage"?

After examining this email, our team concluded that it is a phishing email sent by scammers who seek to extract sensitive information from recipients. This scam email is disguised as a letter from an email service provider. It contains a link to a phishing website. Thus, it should be marked as spam and deleted.

More about the "Used Memory Account Storage" scam email

This email claims that recipients have used 95% of the 15GB available in email account storage. It says that all incoming emails will be delayed from the specified date and time. Recipients are encouraged to clear the email storage or upgrade disk space automatically. The email contains a "Storage Account" button (hyperlink) that opens a deceptive page.

That page changes its design depending on the email address of the visitor/email recipient. For instance, that page imitates the Yahoo Mail login website if the visitor's/recipient's email address ends with @yahoo.com.

The purpose of that phishing page is to trick visitors into providing their email account passwords. Stolen login information can be used to steal email accounts and accounts that can be accessed with the same login credentials.

Threat Summary:

Name	Used Memory Account Storage Email Scam
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Incoming emails will be delayed due to insufficient email account storage.
Disguise	Letter from an email service provider.
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. ▼ Download Combo Cleaner To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.

Similar scam emails in general

Most scammers behind phishing emails disguise their emails as official/urgent/important letters from legitimate companies, organizations (or other entities), real people, etc. In all cases, such emails are designed to lure recipients into providing sensitive information like passwords, credit card details, or other information (mostly via fake/deceptive pages).

Examples of similar emails are "Your Password Is About To Expire Tomorrow", "Verify Your Email Address", and "Microsoft Services Agreement Update". Crooks use email not only to extract information but also to trick recipients into infecting their computers.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Computers get infected with malware via email after opening malicious links (malicious websites) or attachments. Threat actors use MS Office, PDF documents, executables, archives, ISO files, JavaScript files, and other files to trick recipients into infecting computers. Not all files infect computers immediately after opening them.

For instance, malicious MS Office documents infect computers after enabling macros commands (editing/contents).

How to avoid installation of malware?

Do not open files/attachments and links sent from unknown email addresses. Always examine emails before opening their contents (especially when emails are irrelevant). Do not download software from unofficial websites or similar sources. Download it from official pages and stores.

Keep the operating system and installed software updated. Never use third-party tools to update or activate any programs. Run antivirus scans regularly. Use reputed security software for computer protection.

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 "Used Memory Account Storage" email letter:

Subject: Your Outlook Account is out of storage

13.58 GB Used 15GB
 
You've used 95% of the 15GB of Memory Account Storage.
Your emails will be delayed starting from 11/24/2022 12:15:51 p.m.
Kindly clear storage or upgrade your disk space automatically to create more space.

Storage Account

Screenshot of the phishing website:

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▼ DOWNLOAD Combo Cleaner By downloading any software listed on this website you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.

Quick menu:

• What is Used Memory Account Storage phishing email?
• 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?

This email is not personal. Scammers sent the same email to all recipients.

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

If you have provided your email account login information (email address and passwords), change all passwords immediately. Especially if the stolen password can be used to access multiple accounts.

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

It depends on the type of the file. For instance, malicious executables infect computers after opening them. MS Office documents infect computers after enabling macros commands (after enabling editing or content).

I have read the email but did not open the attachment, is my computer infected?

It is safe to open emails. Computers get infected via links or attachments presented in emails used to deliver malware.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections that were present in email attachment?

Yes, Combo Cleaner can detect almost all known malware. It is important to know that high-end malware usually hides deep in the system. It means that a full system scan must be used to eliminate malware of this kind.

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