Do not trust fake "FedEx - Delivery Of The Suspended Package" emails
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on
What kind of email is "FedEx - Delivery Of The Suspended Package"?
After examining the "FedEx - Delivery Of The Suspended Package" email, we determined that it is spam. This fake letter states that the recipient has a pending package delivery.
It must be stressed that the information provided by this phishing email is false, and this mail is in no way associated with FedEx or any other legitimate service providers.
"FedEx - Delivery Of The Suspended Package" email scam overview
The spam email with the subject "Track Your Order #7412563581" (may vary) is presented as a delivery notification from FedEx. The recipient is encouraged to schedule the package's delivery. The letter recommends subscribing to the push notifications in order to avoid shipping issues.
As mentioned in the introduction, all the claims made by this email are false, and this mail is not associated with FedEx or any other genuine service providers or companies.
At the time of research, this scam email promoted a nonfunctional website. It is pertinent to mention that this could be rectified in potential future releases of this spam campaign (i.e., the emails will redirect to operational pages).
It is highly likely that this email was intended to push a phishing site – a type of webpage designed to record entered information and send it to scammers.
Spam mail of this kind typically targets account log-in credentials (predominantly emails), personally identifiable details, and finance-related data (e.g., credit card numbers, banking account details, etc.). To elaborate on the potential dangers posed by such scams, those targeting account credentials can lead to scammers assuming the victim's online identity or abusing private content.
Cyber criminals are particularly interested in emails as they are typically used to register other accounts/platforms – hence, through a hijacked mail, access could be gained to linked content.
Scammers can steal the identities of social account owners (e.g., emails, social media, social networking, messengers, etc.) and ask the contacts/friends/followers for loans or donations, promote scams, and spread malware by sharing malicious files or links.
Stolen financial information or finance-related accounts (e.g., online banking, money transferring, e-commerce, cryptowallets, etc.) can be used to facilitate fraudulent transactions and/or online purchases. Confidential/Compromising content found on data storage or similar platforms could be used for blackmail or other nefarious purposes.
If you have already disclosed your log-in credentials – immediately change the passwords of all potentially exposed accounts and inform their official support.
If the provided information was of a different personal nature (e.g., ID card details, passport scans/photos, credit card numbers, etc.) – contact the appropriate authorities without delay.
| Name | "FedEx - Delivery Of The Suspended Package" spam email |
| Threat Type | Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud |
| Fake Claim | Recipient has a pending package delivery. |
| Disguise | FedEx |
| 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. |
Spam campaigns in general
"DHL Shipping Invoice", "Your Encrypted Voice Message", "Maersk Line email scam", "Chainlink Treasury Airdrop Event", and "ACH-ELECTRONIC FUNDS TRANSFER" are just some examples of spam emails we have investigated recently.
Deceptive mail is used to promote a wide variety of scams; common themes include shipping/delivery mishaps, email account issues, subscription cancellations/renewals, sextortion, lotteries, giveaways, philanthropic efforts, requests for donations, and so forth. Furthermore, these emails are used to proliferate malware.
While infamous for being riddled with errors, spam letters may be competently disguised as messages from legitimate service providers, companies, institutions, organizations, authorities, and other entities.
How do spam campaigns infect computers?
Spam campaigns are often used in malware distribution. These emails/messages can include malicious files as attachments or download links. The files can be documents (PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), executables (.exe, .run, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.
Upon opening, a virulent file triggers the system infection chain. However, some formats can require additional user interaction to initiate malware download/installation. For example, Microsoft Office files need users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), while OneNote documents require them to click on embedded files or links.
How to avoid installation of malware?
We strongly recommend exercising caution with incoming emails, DMs/PMs, SMSes, and other messages. Attachments or links found in suspect/irrelevant mail must not be opened, as they can be malicious. Another recommendation is to use post-2010 Microsoft Office versions since their "Protected View" mode prevents automatic macro execution.
It must be mentioned that malware is not proliferated exclusively via spam mail. Therefore, we also advise being careful while browsing, as fraudulent and dangerous online content usually appears legitimate and innocuous.
Furthermore, all downloads must be performed from official and trustworthy sources. It is just as important to activate and update software using genuine functions/tools, as illegal activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updates can contain malware.
We must emphasize that having a reputable anti-virus installed and kept updated is paramount to device/user safety. Security programs 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 "FedEx - Delivery Of The Suspended Package" spam email letter:
Subject: Track Your Order #7412563581
PENDING DELIVERY
Your parcel delivery notification ID #00207340?
FedEx
DELIVERY OF THE SUSPENDED PACKAGE
Schedule your delivery and subscribe to our push notifications to avoid this from happening again!
You have (1) package waiting for delivery.
5285572307 [TRACK]
Schedule Your Delivery
Instant automatic malware removal:
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Quick menu:
- What is "FedEx - Delivery Of The Suspended Package" 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?
Spam emails are not personal. This mail is distributed in massive 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 – change the passwords of all possibly compromised accounts and inform their official support without delay. If you have disclosed other private data (e.g., ID card details, 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 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 – the system was compromised. However, you might have avoided an infection if it was a document (.doc, .xls, .one, .pdf, etc.). These formats can require additional interaction (e.g., enabling macro commands, clicking embedded files/links, etc.) to jumpstart malware download/installation processes.
Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?
Yes, Combo Cleaner is designed to scan systems and eliminate threats. It can detect and remove practically all known malware infections. Keep in mind that performing a complete system scan is essential since sophisticated malicious software typically hides deep within systems.
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