Avoid getting scammed by fake "Trunk Box Delivery" emails

What kind of email is "Trunk Box Delivery"?

After inspecting the "Trunk Box Delivery" email, we determined that it is spam. This phishing letter states that the recipient will receive an exorbitant sum of money after they pay a fee and reconfirm their personal information.

It must be emphasized that all the claims made by the "Trunk Box Delivery" email are false and intended to trick recipients into transferring money to the scammers as well as their disclosing personally identifiable details.

"Trunk Box Delivery" email scam overview

The email with the subject "Your Trunk Box With DHL" (may vary) states that the sender was waiting for the recipient to contact them regarding a consignment of one million six hundred and fifty thousand USD ($1,650,000.00). The nonexistent money is supposedly a compensation fund for scam victims.

The cash was deposited with DHL (a legitimate company that is not associated with this spam mail) and is awaiting action from the recipient so that it can be shipped. The consignment will not be stored indefinitely, so the letter urges the recipient not to delay.

The sender claims to have taken care of most of the fees, but the recipient must pay the "Security Keeping Fee", which is two hundred and forty-nine USD ($249). The payment has to be made in Bitcoin cryptocurrency, and the email contains the address of the cryptowallet into which it must be transferred.

Additionally, the letter states that the recipient must provide the following information to receive the consignment – full name, age, identification, country, residential address, phone number, and proof of the Bitcoin transfer.

As previously mentioned, all these claims are fake, and they are in no way associated with any real individuals or legitimate entities.

The use of cryptocurrency is common in scams due to the nature of its practically untraceable transactions. Therefore, victims of scams like "Trunk Box Delivery" are unable to reverse the transactions and recover their funds.

This spam email also requests recipients to provide their personal information, which can be sold to third-parties by the scammers or otherwise abused for profit. It is pertinent to mention that successfully scammed victims are often targeted repeatedly.

In summary, by trusting an email like "Trunk Box Delivery" – users can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and identity theft.

If you have already disclosed your private data to scammers (e.g., ID card details, passport scans/photos, credit card numbers, etc.) – immediately contact the appropriate authorities.

Threat Summary:

Name	"Trunk Box Delivery" phishing email
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Recipient will receive a consignment worth 1,650,000 USD after paying a fee and reconfirming their personal information.
Cyber Criminal Cryptowallet Address	bc1qe978gw66el47lhflknkd35g35q5v6xzzljc9ue (Bitcoin)
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.

Spam campaigns in general

We have analyzed thousands of spam emails; "Check Your Email", "DHL - Shipment Designated", "Password Expiry Notification", "ATLANTIS TRANS LOGISTIK", "Junk Filter", "Company Contact", and "Bank Slip" are just some examples of our newest finds.

These letters are used to facilitate a wide variety of scams, and they are employed in malware proliferation (e.g., trojans, ransomware, cryptocurrency miners, etc.).

Various social engineering techniques are used to gain and subsequently abuse recipients' trust. These emails are commonly disguised as "urgent", "important", "official", and similar; they can even be presented as messages from legitimate companies, service providers, institutions, authorities, and other entities.

Due to how widespread and well-made this mail can be, we strongly recommend exercising caution with incoming emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, and other messages.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Spam emails can contain malicious files as attachments or download links. These files can be in various formats, e.g., documents (Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, PDF, etc.), archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), executables (.exe, .run, etc.), JavaScript, and so forth.

When a virulent file is executed, run, or otherwise opened – the malware download/installation process is triggered. For example, Microsoft Office documents infect systems by executing malicious macro commands, while infectious OneNote files need users to click on embedded content to start downloading/installing malware.

How to avoid installation of malware?

We highly recommend treating incoming emails and other messages with caution. The attachments or links found in suspect/irrelevant mail must not be opened, as they can be virulent. It is essential to use post-2010 Microsoft Office versions since they have the "Protected View" mode that prevents automatic macro execution.

However, malware is not distributed exclusively via spam mail. Therefore, we advise being vigilant while browsing since fake and dangerous online content usually appears ordinary and innocuous.

It is just as important to download only from official and verified channels. Additionally, all programs must be activated and updated using legitimate functions/tools, as illegal activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updaters may contain malware.

We must stress the importance of having a dependable anti-virus installed and kept updated. This software must be used to run regular system scans and to remove detected threats/issues. 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 "Trunk Box Delivery" spam email letter:

Subject: Your Trunk Box With DHL

Customer Service Hours--24 hours
Office Hours Monday to Saturday:
Greetings!!!

Good day,

We have been waiting for you to contact me for your Trunk Box worth$1,650,000.00 (One Million, Six Hundred and Fifty Thousand United States Dollars), being a compensation fund for 150 scam victims, but I did not hear from you all this while.
I have deposited the Trunk Box with DHL COURIER SERVICE in Texas Usa, I traveled out of the country for a 3 Months Course and I will not be back until completion of my 3 months course. What you have to do now is to contact the DHL COURIER SERVICE immediately to know when they will deliver  your consignment to you because of the expiring date.

For your information, I have paid for the delivery Charge, Insurance premium and Clearance Certificate Fee of the consignment showing that it is not a Drug Money or meant to sponsor Terrorism attack in your Country. The only money you will send to the DHL COURIER SERVICE to deliver your Trunk Box directly to your postal Address in your country is US$249 only being the Security Keeping Fee of the Courier Company so far. Again, don't be deceived by anybody to pay any other money except US$249 to their:

 

BTC wallet below (bc1qe978gw66el47lhflknkd35g35q5v6xzzljc9ue).

I would have paid that but they refused, because they don't know when you will contact them and in case of demurrage. You have to contact the DHL COURIER SERVICE now for the delivery of your Trunk Box with this information below:

Contact Agent:  Mrs Sharon Obama
Email Address: dhl-shipping@hotmail.com
Tell: +18032325432

Reconfirm the below information to the agent:

(1). Full Names
(2). Residential Address
(3). Phone Number
(4). Identification
(5). Country
(6). BTC payment proof
(7). Age

 

Request for the tracking number of the Trunk Box to enable you track and know when it will get to your address.

Let me repeat again, try to contact them immediately you receive this mail to avoid any further delay and remember to pay the Security Keeping fee of  US$249 for their BTC Wallet for immediate action. You should also let me know through email as soon as you receive your consignment.

Yours Faithfully,
Mrs Mary Trump

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Quick menu:

• What is "Trunk Box Delivery" 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?

Cyber criminals distribute spam emails in massive campaigns with the hopes that at least some recipients will fall for their scams. Therefore, this mail is not personal.

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

If you have disclosed your personally-identifiable or finance-related information to scammers (e.g., ID card details, passport photos/scans, credit card numbers, etc.) – immediately contact the corresponding authorities. And if you have provided your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all potentially compromised accounts and inform their official support without delay.

I have sent cryptocurrency to an address presented in a spam email, can I get my money back?

Cryptocurrency transactions are virtually untraceable, which makes them practically irreversible. Therefore, funds cannot be retrieved following their transfer.

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

No, opening/reading an email will not trigger any malware download/installation processes. Devices are infected when malicious attachments or links are opened/clicked.

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

Whether your device was infected may depend on the open file's format. If it was an executable (.exe, .run, etc.) – most likely, yes. However, you might have avoided an infection if it was a document (.doc, .xls, .one, .pdf, etc.). These formats may require additional interaction (e.g., enabling macro commands, clicking on embedded content, etc.) to start downloading/installing malware.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner is capable of detecting and eliminating practically all known malware infections. It must be stressed that since high-end malicious software tends to hide deep within systems – performing a complete system scan is essential.

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