Avoid losing your account via fake "e-Mail Support Center" emails

What kind of email is "e-Mail Support Center"?

After inspecting the "e-Mail Support Center" letter, we determined that it is spam. It promotes a phishing scam – the email makes false claims regarding the recipient's account password expiring soon in order to trick them into disclosing it. Thus, the scheme enables scammers to steal exposed email accounts.

"e-Mail Support Center" email scam overview

The spam letter with the subject "MailBox Support Center! for [recipient's_email_address]" (may vary) states that the recipient's email account password expires today. The log-in credentials need to be validated to resume using them.

It must be emphasized that the claims made by this letter are false, and this mail is not associated with any legitimate service providers or entities.

When a user presses the "Keep Same Password" button in this fake alert, they are redirected to a phishing website. This site is disguised as an email account sign-in page. Log-in credentials entered into this website are recorded and sent to cyber criminals.

Emails are extensively targeted because they tend to include incredibly sensitive information and may serve as an avenue for stealing the accounts and platforms registered through them.

To expand upon the potential misuse of the connected content, scammers can steal the identities of account owners (e.g., emails, social networking, social media, etc.) and request loans or donations from contacts/friends/followers, endorse scams, and spread malware by sharing malicious links/files.

Compromising/Confidential data found on stolen accounts can be used for blackmail or other nefarious purposes. What is more, compromised finance-related accounts (e.g., e-commerce, money transferring, digital wallets, online banking, etc.) can be used to make unauthorized transactions or online purchases.

To summarize, victims of scam mail like "e-Mail Support Center" can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and even identity theft.

If you have already disclosed your log-in credentials to scammers – change the passwords of all potentially exposed accounts and contact their official support.

Threat Summary:

Name	"e-Mail Support Center" phishing email
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Recipient's email account password will expire today.
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.
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Phishing spam campaign examples

"Asia Pacific Lottery", "Seeking Partnership Investment", and "American Express - Username/Password Has Been Updated" are merely a few examples of phishing emails.

However, other scams are facilitated through spam mail as well. Additionally, it is used to proliferate malware. The purpose of these letters is to gain and subsequently abuse recipients' trust.

While many spam emails are shoddily put together and full of errors, some are competently crafted and even believably disguised as messages from genuine entities (e.g., service providers, companies, institutions, authorities, etc.).

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Malware is commonly proliferated via spam campaigns. Deceptive emails/messages can include malicious files as attachments or download links. These files can be archives (RAR, ZIP, etc.), executables (.exe, .run, etc.), documents (PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.

Once a virulent file is opened – the infection chain is initiated. Some formats need extra actions to jumpstart malware download/installation processes. For example, Microsoft Office files require users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), while OneNote documents need them to click on embedded links or files.

How to avoid installation of malware?

It is crucial to exercise caution with incoming emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, and other messages. We advise against opening attachments or links present in dubious/irrelevant mail, as they can be harmful or infectious.

However, keep in mind that malware is not proliferated only via spam mail. Therefore, we recommend vigilance while browsing, as fraudulent and malicious online content typically appears legitimate and harmless.

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

It is paramount to have a reputable anti-virus installed and kept updated. This software must be used to run regular system scans and to remove 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 "e-Mail Support Center" spam email letter:

Subject: MailBox Support Center! for ********

This email is from a trusted sοurce ( ******** ).

e-Mail Support Center!

 

Dear ********
Your Password for ******** expires today and You will need to Validate your password or continue using current password
Keep Same Password

This email was sent to: ******** on 6/6/2024 5:25:17 a.m.
©Mailbox. • 2024

Screenshot of the phishing website promoted by the "e-Mail Support Center" spam campaign:

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Quick menu:

• What is "e-Mail Support Center" 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?

Regardless of any relevant or accurate information that they may include, spam emails are not personal. These letters are sent out in mass-scale campaigns – hence, thousands of users receive identical or incredibly similar emails.

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 compromised accounts and inform their official support. And if you've disclosed other private data (e.g., ID card details, passport photos/scans, 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?

Systems are infected when malicious attachments/links are opened; merely reading an email poses no such threat.

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

Whether the system was infected might depend on the format of the opened file. Executables (.exe, .run, etc.) cause infections almost without fail (once opened). While other formats, like documents (.doc, .xls, .one, .pdf, etc.), might need additional user interaction to initiate infection chains (e.g., enabling macros, clicking embedded content, etc.).

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner is capable of detecting and removing practically all known malware infections. It must be emphasized that running a full system scan is paramount since sophisticated malicious programs usually hide deep within systems.

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