Avoid getting scammed by fake "Confirm Bank Account" emails
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on
What kind of email is "Confirm Bank Account"?
After investigating the "Confirm Bank Account" email, we determined that it to be spam. This letter proclaims that the recipient's pending transfer of 1.3 million GBP (pound sterling) has been approved. The funds will be transferred within four days following confirmation of the banking account. It must be emphasized that this information is false, and it is not associated with any legitimate entities.
"Confirm Bank Account" email scam overview
The spam email with the subject "Ref: BC438177" (may vary) namedrops both real and legitimate-sounding entities. The scam letter details issues with transferring funds to the recipient and reassures that they have been resolved. Therefore, the user will be able to receive the £3,150,000.00 in four days. The recipient is requested to confirm whether they are using the same bank account or to provide the details of an alternative one.
As mentioned in the introduction, all the claims made by this email are false, and this mail is not associated with the International Monetary Fund, Reliance Bank, or any other genuine entities.
These types of spam emails typically operate as phishing scams. Based on the text in "Confirm Bank Account", it likely targets finance-related information (e.g., online bank account log-in credentials, banking account details, debit/credit card numbers, etc.).
This scam might also seek personally identifiable information, like names, ages, nationalities, addresses, occupations, marital statuses, contact details, and so on. With such sensitive data in their possession, cyber criminals may be able to carry out a variety of nefarious deeds like stealing victims' identities, facilitating fraudulent transactions, making online purchases, and so forth.
Spam mail of this kind might also trick victims into sending money to scammers for bogus reasons (e.g., taxes, processing/transferring fees, etc.). Difficult-to-trace methods are used for this purpose, e.g., cryptocurrencies, gift cards, pre-paid vouchers, or cash hidden in packages and shipped. Relying on such methods diminishes the chances of successful prosecution of criminals and of victims retrieving their funds.
It is pertinent to mention that these scams can be incredibly elaborate, and successfully scammed victims may get targeted repeatedly.
To summarize, by trusting a spam email like "Confirm Bank Account" – users can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and even identity theft.
If you have disclosed highly vulnerable information like ID card details, passport scans/photos, credit card numbers, etc. – immediately contact the appropriate authorities. And if you have provided your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all possibly exposed accounts and inform their official support without delay.
| Name | "Confirm Bank Account" phishing email |
| Threat Type | Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud |
| Fake Claim | After confirming their bank account, the recipient's funds – £3,150,000.00 – will be transferred to them. |
| Disguise | International Monetary Fund, Reliance Bank |
| 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. |
Phishing spam campaign examples
"Giveaway Of Lottery Winnings", "Shipping Receipt", "SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) Encryption", "HSBC Transfer Request", "Consignment Box", and "Reserve Bank of Australia" are merely some examples of spam campaigns we have investigated recently.
Various lures are used to deceive recipients into disclosing private information or performing other activities. Aside from scam promotion, spam is used in malware proliferation.
We highly recommend treating incoming emails and other messages with care, as spam mail is incredibly prevalent and may be competently crafted.
How do spam campaigns infect computers?
Spam campaigns are commonly used in malware distribution. The emails/messages can include malicious files as attachments or download links. These files can be documents (PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), executables (.exe, .run, etc.), archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.
When a virulent file is opened – the infection chain is initiated. Some formats may need additional actions to start malware download/installation. For example, Microsoft Office files require users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), while OneNote documents need them to click on embedded content like links or files.
How to avoid installation of malware?
We advise against opening attachments or links found in suspect/irrelevant mail (e.g., emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, etc.), as they can be harmful or infectious.
It must be mentioned that malware is not spread exclusively through spam messages. Therefore, we recommend exercising caution while browsing, as fraudulent and malicious online content usually appears legitimate and innocuous.
Furthermore, all downloads must be performed from official and verified channels. Another recommendation is to activate and update software using genuine functions/tools, as illegal activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updates can contain malware.
It is paramount for device and user safety to have a dependable anti-virus installed and kept updated. Security 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 "Confirm Bank Account" spam email letter:
Subject: Ref: BC438177
From: The affiliate office of the:
*International Monetary Fund,
*International Fund Regulatory Board,
*Capital Flight Fund Regulation,
Reliance Bank Limited
London EC3R 8EB,
United Kingdom
Sub: Payment approval GBP£3,150,000.00,
Good day, this is a comprehensive summary as to what has been agreed on your pending transfer. The hiccup which led to delay of the transfer of your funds into your account has been rectified in agreement with the Financial Regulatory Body of the United Kingdom. You do not have anything to fear or worry at all as the entire paper work has been concluded and the transfer approval documents have all been endorsed.
The transfer is approved to be completed into your account in 4 days so that there will be no further hitches, please, note that the final payment approval is endorsed in favor of the Reliance Bank as the accredited bank, therefore, we have received all your payment related papers to enable us transfer the funds to you. Kindly reply and confirm if you are still using the same bank account or, furnish your alternative bank account for immediate processing of the transfer into your account.
Waiting for your prompt reply.
Faithfully,
Mrs Leanna McEwan
Head of operation/services &
Commercial Director.
Reliance Bank Limited
Billingsgate, London EC3R 8EB,
United Kingdom
facsimile +44-155-5559-597
info@relianceremitt.com
customer.experience@relianceremitt.com
commercial@relianceremitt.com
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Quick menu:
- What is "Confirm Bank Account" 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, regardless of any relevant details that they may include. This mail is sent out 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 disclosed your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all potentially compromised accounts and inform their official support. However, if you've provided other private data (e.g., ID card details, credit card numbers, etc.) – contact the corresponding authorities without delay.
I have read a spam email but didn't open the attachment, is my computer infected?
Merely reading an email is harmless; systems are infected when malicious attachments or links are opened.
I have downloaded and opened a file attached to a spam email, is my computer infected?
The format of the opened file might influence whether the device was infected. If it was an executable (.exe, .run, etc.), then it is definitively the case that the system was compromised, as these files cause infections almost without fail. However, some formats like documents (.doc, .xls, .one, .pdf, etc.) may require extra actions to initiate malware download/installation chains (e.g., enabling macros, clicking embedded content, etc.).
Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?
Yes, Combo Cleaner is designed to scan devices and remove all types of threats. It is capable of eliminating most of the known malware infections. Keep in mind that running a complete system scan is crucial – since high-end malicious programs typically hide deep within systems.
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