Avoid getting scammed by fake "Account Password Needs To Be Reset" emails

What kind of email is "Account Password Needs To Be Reset"?

The "Account Password Needs To Be Reset" email is spam. The fake letter states that the recipient's email account has been blocked and that they need to reset the password to restore access. This email promotes a phishing website disguised as a sign-in page to deceive recipients into disclosing their log-in credentials.

"Account Password Needs To Be Reset" email scam overview

The spam email with the subject "Password Recovery Action Required For [recipient's_email_address]" (may vary) informs the recipient that their mailbox might be inaccessible or incapable of sending/receiving messages. The recipient is instructed to reset their password to continue using their email account.

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

Pressing the "Keep Using the Sa me Password" button results in a redirect to a phishing site, which is presented as an email account sign-in webpage. Information entered into such pages is recorded and sent to scammers. Cyber criminals commonly target email accounts, as they tend to include incredibly sensitive information and may serve as an avenue for stealing the accounts and platforms registered through them.

The unauthorized access can be variously misused. For example, scammers can steal the identities of account owners (e.g., emails, social media/networking, messengers, chats, etc.) and ask contacts/friends/followers for loans or donations, endorse scams, and proliferate malware by sharing malicious files or links.

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

To summarize, victims of scam mail like "Account Password Needs To Be Reset" can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and even identity theft.

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

Threat Summary:

Name	"Account Password Needs To Be Reset" phishing email
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Recipient's email account password must be reset to restore access and continue using it.
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 analyzed countless spam emails; "Chase - Access Restricted", "SSL Port Server Errors", "Someone Added You As Their Recovery", and "2026 FIFA World Cup Lottery" are just some of our latest articles on phishing campaigns.

Various scams are promoted through spam mail, and it is used to distribute malware. While the commonly held belief that spam emails are poorly put together and full of grammatical/spelling mistakes is not untrue, it is not always the case. These letters can be competently made and even convincingly disguised as messages from legitimate entities (e.g., service providers, companies, organizations, institutions, authorities, etc.).

Due to how widespread spam email is and how well-crafted it can be – we strongly recommend caution with incoming emails, DMs/PMs, SMSes, and other messages.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Malware is spread via malicious files that can be attached to or linked inside the spam emails/messages. These files come in various formats, e.g., documents (PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), executables (.exe, .run, etc.), archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), JavaScript, and so forth.

Malware download/installation chains are triggered when infectious files are opened. However, some formats need additional user interaction to jumpstart these 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 files or links.

How to avoid installation of malware?

It is essential to treat incoming emails and other messages with vigilance. Attachments or links found in dubious/irrelevant mail must not be opened, as they can be harmful or malicious.

It must be stressed that malware is not distributed exclusively through spam mail. Therefore, we also advise exercising caution while browsing, as fraudulent and dangerous online content typically appears genuine and harmless.

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

It is paramount for device integrity and user safety to have a dependable anti-virus installed and kept updated. This 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 "Account Password Needs To Be Reset" spam email letter:

Subject: Password Recovery Action Required For ********

********

Hello membership

You might not be able to access your mailbox or send or receive new messages since your ******** account password needs to be reset.

Click_below_to_continue_using_the_same_password

Keep Using the Sa me Password

You will be forwarded to hxxp://www.[ [-Domain-]] after verification.

Screenshot of the phishing website promoted by the "Account Password Needs To Be Reset" spam campaign:

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▼ 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 "Account Password Needs To Be Reset" 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, even if they include details relevant to the recipients. Cyber criminals distribute this mail by the thousand with the hopes that at least some recipients will fall for their scams.

I have provided my personal information when tricked by this spam email, what should I do?

If you have disclosed your account credentials – change the passwords of all possibly compromised accounts and inform their official support. And if you've provided other private information (e.g., passport scans/photos, ID card details, credit card numbers, etc.) – immediately contact relevant authorities.

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

Reading an email poses no infection threat; malware download/installation is initiated 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, yes – the device was infected. However, you might have avoided this if it was a document (.doc, .xls, .pdf, .one, etc.). These formats may need extra actions to begin downloading/installing malware (e.g., enabling macro commands, clicking embedded content, etc.).

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner is designed to scan systems and eliminate all manner of threats. It can detect and remove most of the known malware infections. Note that running a full system scan is crucial since sophisticated malicious programs usually hide deep within systems.

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