Do not trust fake "Your Account Has Been Blacklisted Due To Phishing" emails

What kind of email is "Your Account Has Been Blacklisted Due To Phishing"?

Our inspection of the "Your Account Has Been Blacklisted Due To Phishing" email revealed that it is spam. It alerts the recipient that their mail account will be terminated due to phishing/spam-related activities.

However, this spam letter actually operates as a phishing scam and targets recipients' email account log-in credentials via a fake sign-in webpage.

"Your Account Has Been Blacklisted Due To Phishing" email scam overview

The spam email with the subject "FINAL WARNING: ACCOUNT TERMINATION REQUEST*(24HRS TO GO) [recipient's_ email_ address]" (may vary) informs the recipient that their mail account has been blacklisted. Allegedly, it will be terminated within 24 hours due to detected phishing/spam-related activities. The account deletion can be prevented by clicking "STOP ACTION NOW".

As mentioned in the introduction, all the claims made by this spam letter are false, and they are in no way associated with any legitimate entities or service providers.

When we followed the link promoted in this message, we were redirected to a phishing website that mimics the recipient's email service sign-in page. Despite the site's relatively legitimate appearance, it is fake. Log-in credentials (i.e., email account passwords) entered into this webpage will be disclosed to the scammers behind this spam campaign.

The victim risks more than just losing their email, as they can also have the content registered through it stolen. To expand on this, cyber criminals can use hijacked finance-related accounts (e.g., online banking, money transferring, e-commerce, cryptowallets, etc.) to make unauthorized transactions and online purchases.

Scammers can also steal the identities of social account owners (e.g., emails, social networking, social media, messengers, etc.) and ask the contacts/friends/followers for loans or donations, promote scams, and spread malware by sharing malicious files/links.

In summary, victims of emails like "Your Account Has Been Blacklisted Due To Phishing" can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and even identity theft.

If you have already provided your log-in credentials to a phishing site – immediately change the passwords of all possibly exposed accounts and contact their official support.

Threat Summary:

Name	"Your Account Has Been Blacklisted Due To Phishing" spam email
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Recipient's email account will be deactivated due to detected phishing/spam-related activity.
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.

Phishing spam campaign examples

"Moldindconbank email scam", "Webmail Password Center", "Payment List By The Board Of Directors", and "Apple Mobile Promo Draw" are merely some examples of phishing emails we have investigated recently. Phishing scams target a wide variety of information, ranging from account log-in credentials to credit card numbers.

Spam mail is used to facilitate various scams and even to proliferate malware (e.g., trojans, ransomware, etc.). These emails can have pretty basic disguises or elaborately mimic messages from genuine service providers, companies, organizations, authorities, and other entities.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Spam campaigns are commonly used in malware proliferation. These emails/messages can contain malicious files as attachments or download links. Virulent files come in various formats, e.g., executables (.exe, .run, etc.), archives (RAR, ZIP, etc.), documents (PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.

Once such a file is executed, run, or otherwise opened – the malware download/installation chain is triggered. For example, Microsoft Office documents infect systems by executing malicious macro commands, while infectious OneNote files require users to click on embedded files/links.

How to avoid installation of malware?

We strongly advise treating incoming mail (e.g., emails, DMs/PMs, SMSes, etc.) with caution. Attachments or links found in dubious/irrelevant messages must not be opened, as they can be virulent. We recommend using post-2010 Microsoft Office versions since they have the "Protected View" mode that prevents automatic macro execution.

However, malware is not distributed only through spam mail. Therefore, we also advise being vigilant while browsing since fraudulent and malicious online content typically appears ordinary and innocuous.

Furthermore, all downloads must be performed from official and verified sources. Another recommendation is to activate and update software using legitimate functions/tools, as illegal activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updaters can contain malware.

We must emphasize the importance of having a dependable anti-virus installed and kept up-to-date. Security programs must be used to run regular system scams and to remove detected threats and 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 "Your Account Has Been Blacklisted Due To Phishing" spam email letter:

Subject: FINAL WARNING: ACCOUNT TERMINATION REQUEST*(24HRS TO GO) ********

********
Dear  ********

Your account has been blacklisted due to phishing
and spamming activities from your mailbox stop action now.
STOP ACTION NOW

Or lose full access to the mailbox after 24 hours of opening this warning message.

Thank You,

©2023 ******** All rights reserved.

Screenshot of the phishing website promoted by this spam campaign:

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Quick menu:

• What is "Your Account Has Been Blacklisted Due To Phishing" spam 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 large-scale campaigns – hence, thousands of users receive identical messages.

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

If you have provided your account credentials – change the passwords of all potentially exposed accounts and inform their official support without delay. And if you have disclosed other private data (e.g., ID card details, passport scans/photos, credit card numbers, etc.) – immediately contact the corresponding authorities.

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

Devices are infected when malicious attachments or links are opened/clicked. Merely reading an email will not trigger any system infection processes.

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

Whether an infection occurs may depend on the opened 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, .pdf, .one, etc.). These formats may require additional interaction (e.g., enabling macro commands, clicking embedded content, etc.) to begin malware download/installation processes.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner is capable of detecting and eliminating nearly all known malware infections. It must be stressed that performing a complete system scan is essential – since sophisticated malicious programs tend to hide deep within systems.

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