Avoid getting scammed by fake "Zoom Antivirus Plus Subscription" emails
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on (updated)
What kind of email is "Zoom Antivirus Plus Subscription"?
After inspecting the "Zoom Antivirus Plus Subscription" email, we determined that it is fake. This spam letter is presented as an invoice for "Zoom Antivirus Plus". All this information is false, and this mail is in no way associated with the actual Zoom Video Communications, Inc. The email is likely used to promote a refund scam.
"Zoom Antivirus Plus Subscription" email scam overview
The spam email is presented as an invoice for "Zoom Antivirus Plus", a subscription for up to four devices lasting three years. The total sum is listed as 583.35 USD. It must be reiterated that this email is fake and not associated with Zoom or any other legitimate products and entities.
This mail aims to trick recipients into calling the provided helplines. Once called, the scammers pretend to be support and can lure victims into a variety of harmful actions. The scheme can take place entirely over the phone.
Victims can be tricked into making monetary transactions, disclosing sensitive information, downloading/installing malware, and so on.
Cyber criminals primarily target the following data: log-in credentials (e.g., emails, social media, e-commerce, money transferring, online banking, digital wallets, etc.), personally identifiable information (e.g., ID card details, passport photos/scans, etc.), and finance-related data (e.g., banking account details, credit/debit card numbers, etc.).
Victims can be deceived into disclosing the information over the phone or entering it into phishing websites/files. Alternatively, criminals can use data-stealing malware to reach this goal.
Based on how this email is formatted, it is likely that this scheme operates as a refund scam. The lure is a refund, purchase cancellation, or similar – the fake support offers to help the user with this process by accessing their devices remotely.
The connection is typically made using legitimate remote access software like UltraViewer, TeamViewer, etc. After it is established, cyber criminals request the victim to log into their online bank account. Scammers use a feature of the remote access program to darken the victim's screen or overlay it with some kind of image.
"Support" then asks to enter the refund amount (e.g., 583.35 USD), and once the screen is visible again – a proclamation is made that the user made an error and had a significantly large amount transferred to them.
While the screen was invisible to the victim, the criminals created the impression of this occurring by either moving funds between accounts (e.g., from savings to checking) or editing the banking website's HTML to change its appearance. It must be stressed that neither action actually affects the funds in the user's bank account.
The scammers request and beg for the "excess" to be returned. The victim is asked to use difficult-to-trace methods to "give back" the money, e.g., cryptocurrencies, gift cards, pre-paid vouchers, cash hidden in packages and shipped, etc.
It must be emphasized that since no funds were transferred to the user, by returning the "excess" – they are essentially sending their own money to cyber criminals. However, the scam could operate in other ways, and scammers can cause various severe problems once connected to victims' devices.
To summarize, by trusting an email like "Zoom Antivirus Plus Subscription" – users can experience system infections, serious privacy issues, significant financial losses, and even identity theft.
If you have disclosed your personally identifiable or finance-related information to scammers – immediately contact the appropriate authorities. And if you've provided your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all possibly exposed accounts and inform their official support.
If you have permitted criminals to access your devices remotely – you must first disconnect it from the Internet. Afterward, uninstall the remote access software that the scammers used, as they might not need your permission to reconnect. Lastly, run a complete system scan with an anti-virus and remove all detected threats.
| Name | "Zoom Antivirus Plus Subscription" spam email |
| Threat Type | Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud |
| Fake Claim | Email is presented as an $583.35 invoice for an anti-virus subscription. |
| Disguise | Zoom Video Communications, Inc. |
| Support Scammer Phone Number(s) | (844) 573-1613 |
| 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. |
Similar spam campaign examples
We have written about countless spam campaigns; "AT&T email scam", "Chase Bank Invoice email scam", and "Apple Security Releases email scam" are just a few of our articles on email promoting refund scams.
Spam is used to facilitate various schemes and to spread malware. While the commonly held belief that these emails are riddled with errors is not untrue, it is not always the case. These letters can be competently made and even believably disguised as messages from genuine entities (e.g., companies, service providers, organizations, etc.).
How do spam campaigns infect computers?
Spam campaigns proliferate malware by distributing infectious files as attachments or download links. These files can be archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), executables (.exe, .run, etc.), documents (Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, PDF, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.
Once a malicious file is opened – the infection chain is triggered. However, some formats might require additional user interaction. For example, Microsoft Office files need users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), while OneNote documents require them to click on embedded links or files – to start downloading/installing malware.
How to avoid installation of malware?
We recommend vigilance with incoming emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, and other messages. Attachments or links present in dubious/irrelevant mail must not be opened, as they can be malicious.
It must be mentioned that malware is not distributed exclusively via spam mail. Therefore, we also advise caution when browsing, as fraudulent and dangerous online content usually appears legitimate and harmless.
Additionally, all downloads must be performed from official and verified sources. Another recommendation is to activate and update software using genuine functions/tools, as illegal activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updaters can contain malware.
It is paramount to have a reputable anti-virus installed and kept up-to-date. Security programs must be used to run regular system scans 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 "Zoom Antivirus Plus Subscription" spam email letter:
Confirmation N5/AR4-140
Thank You for renewing your sub.
Kindly search the attached document quickly.
ZOOM
INVOICE
Number 0874130065
Zoom Office Corpo
4511 Sloat Road
Fremont
CA 94538
United States
Date: 14 Jun 2024
Order No.: 731952
Amt Paid: $583.35
Helpline:
(844) 573-1613
Item Units Price Amt
Zoom Antivirus Plus 1 $478.79 $478.79
3 Years 4 Devices
Zoom Account Premium Support 1 $38.47 $38.47
Instant Activation
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Quick menu:
- What is "Zoom Antivirus Plus Subscription" 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, even if they include details relevant to the recipients. This mail is sent out in massive 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 disclosed your log-in credentials – immediately change the passwords of all potentially compromised accounts and inform their official support. However, if you have provided other personal data (e.g., ID card details, passport scans, credit card numbers, etc.) – contact the corresponding authorities without delay.
I have allowed cyber criminals to remotely access my computer, what should I do?
If you have permitted cyber criminals to access your device remotely – immediately disconnect it from the Internet. Then remove the remote access program that the criminals used (e.g., UltraViewer, TeamViewer, etc.), as they may not need your consent to reconnect. Afterward, perform a full system scan with an anti-virus and eliminate all detected threats.
I have read a spam email but didn't open the attachment, is my computer infected?
No, just reading an email is harmless. Systems are infected when malicious attachments or links are opened/clicked.
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, the device was compromised. However, you might have avoided the infection if it was a document (.doc, .pdf, .xls, .one, etc.). These formats may need extra interaction to jumpstart malware download/installation processes (e.g., enabling macro commands, clicking embedded content, etc.).
Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?
Yes, Combo Cleaner is capable of detecting and removing most of the known malware infections. It must be emphasized that performing a complete system scan is essential since high-end malicious software usually hides deep within systems.
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