Do not trust fake "Your Mail Version Is Currently Being Disconnected" emails

What kind of email is "Your Mail Version Is Currently Being Disconnected"?

Our inspection of the "Your Mail Version Is Currently Being Disconnected" email revealed that it is spam. This letter informs the recipient that they have undelivered messages and that their current mail version will be disconnected. As the recipient attempts to upgrade it, they are redirected to a phishing website targeting email account log-in credentials.

"Your Mail Version Is Currently Being Disconnected" email scam overview

This spam email notifies the recipient that they have five pending messages under their "mail network server". The mail version 2.0.1 is currently being disconnected; thus, accounts using it cannot receive incoming emails. The account will cease operating within 24 hours. The recipient is encouraged to upgrade their mail to the 5.0.1 version and retrieve the withheld messages.

It must be stressed that all these claims are false, and this mail is in no way associated with any legitimate service providers.

After the "RESTORE MESSAGES NOW" button was clicked, we were redirected to a phishing site presented as an email sign-in page. Information entered into websites of this kind is recorded and sent to scammers.

Victims of this scam can have their email accounts stolen. However, cyber criminals might also hijack the content registered through the emails.

To expand on the potential misuse, scammers can steal the identities of social account owners (e.g., emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, etc.) and ask the contacts/friends for loans or donations, promote scams, and spread malware by sharing malicious files/links.

Furthermore, stolen finance-related accounts (e.g., online banking, money transferring, e-commerce, digital wallets, etc.) can be used to make fraudulent transactions and online purchases.

What is more, should any sensitive or compromising content be found on hijacked data storage or similar platforms – it could be used for blackmail or other nefarious purposes.

In summary, by trusting an email like "Your Mail Version Is Currently Being Disconnected" – users can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and even identity theft.

If you have already disclosed your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all possibly exposed accounts and contact their official support without delay.

Threat Summary:

Name	"Your Mail Version Is Currently Being Disconnected" phishing email
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Recipient's mail version will be disconnected and it cannot receive incoming emails.
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

We have investigated countless deceptive emails; "Signed Agreement", "View And Upload Required Documents", "Emails Did Not Reach Your Inbox", and "American Express - Update Your Account Information" are just some examples of phishing letters.

This type of scam mail primarily targets log-in credentials, personally identifiable details, credit card numbers, financial information, etc. Spam emails are used to promote various scams and even to proliferate malware.

While this mail is infamous for its grammatical and spelling errors, it can be competently disguised as messages from legitimate service providers, companies, institutions, authorities, and other entities.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

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

Malware download/installation chains are triggered when such a file is opened. However, some formats might require additional actions to initiate infection processes. For example, Microsoft Office documents need users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), while OneNote files require them to click embedded files or links.

How to avoid installation of malware?

We strongly recommend exercising caution with incoming emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, and other messages. Attachments or links present in suspect/irrelevant mail must not be opened, as they can be malicious.

It is important to use Microsoft Office versions released after 2010 since they have the "Protected View" mode that prevents automatic macro execution.

It must be mentioned that malware is not distributed only through spam mail. Therefore, we also advise being careful while browsing since fraudulent and dangerous online content typically appears genuine and innocuous.

Furthermore, all downloads must be performed from official and trustworthy channels. Another recommendation is to activate and update programs using functions/tools provided by legitimate developers, as illegal activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updaters may contain malware.

We must emphasize that having a reputable anti-virus installed and kept updated is essential to device/user safety. This software must be used to run regular system scans and to remove detected threats. 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 Mail Version Is Currently Being Disconnected" spam email letter:

Subject: ******** Important Notice

You have new pending messages

Dear ********

You have 5 New pending mails under the  ******** mail network server. Your mail version 2.0.1 is currently being disconnected from receiving incoming e-mail, and will no longer work 24 hours from Wednesday, August 30, 2023 4:58 a.m.

To retrieve your messages and upgrade to version 5.0.1, kindly follow the upgrade information below:

RESTORE MESSAGES NOW

Regard

********   admin 2023 | All rights reserved.

Screenshot of the phishing website promoted by this spam campaign:

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:
▼ 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 "Your Mail Version Is Currently Being Disconnected" 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?

Spam emails are not personal. This mail is sent in large-scale operations – 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 – immediately change the passwords of all possibly exposed accounts and inform their official support. And if the disclosed information was of a different personal nature (e.g., ID card details, credit card numbers, etc.) – contact the appropriate authorities without delay.

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

System infections are triggered when malicious attachments or links are opened. Hence, just opening/reading an email is harmless.

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

If the opened file was an executable (.exe, .run, etc.) – most likely, yes – your device was infected. However, you might have avoided this if it was a document (.doc, .pdf, .xls, .one, etc.). These formats may require additional user interaction to jumpstart malware download/installation processes (e.g., enabling macro commands, clicking embedded files/links, etc.).

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner is capable of detecting and eliminating most of the known malware infections. It must be stressed that since high-end malicious software typically hides deep within systems – running a complete system scan is paramount.

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