How to recognize sams like the fake "Westside Auto Wholesale" email
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on
What is "Westside Auto Wholesale"?
We have inspected the email and learned that it is a scam email posing as a letter from Westside Auto Wholesale (a legitimate company selling used cars). The scammers utilize this email to trick recipients into revealing personal information. Such emails are classified as phishing emails.
More about the "Westside Auto Wholesale" scam email
This phishing email claims that a document from Westside Auto Wholesale has been sent for review and signature. It says that a person named Tash Passaris has sent the recipient a document titled "Digital Signature Consent Form v.1.2.pdf" and provides a link ("VIEW COMPLETED DOCUMENT" button) to view that document.
This email is created to deceive the recipient into clicking a link that leads to a fake sign-in page. The fraudulent page is designed to mimic the recipient's email service. For instance, if the recipient uses Yahoo Mail, the fake page will appear as a Yahoo Mail sign-in portal. This phishing page aims to extract login credentials for email accounts.
With stolen credentials, scammers may access personal information, such as credit card details, ID card information, private conversations, and similar, which can be used for identity theft, fraudulent purchases, phishing attacks, or other purposes. Additionally, they can use the compromised email to send spam or fraudulent messages to contacts, further spreading the scam.
Furthermore, access to an email account might allow scammers to reset passwords for other accounts linked to that email, potentially gaining control over financial or social media accounts. Scammers may also try to use the same login credentials they have stolen to access other accounts.
Either way, it is important to be careful with unexpected emails and not open links without verifying their legitimacy.
| Name | Westside Auto Wholesale Email Scam |
| Threat Type | Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud |
| Fake Claim | A document from Westside Auto Wholesale has been sent for review. |
| Disguise | Letter from Westside Auto Wholesale |
| 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 scam emails in general
Most phishing emails are disguised as urgent and important messages. Scammers behind these emails aim to trick recipients into clicking on links or providing personal information. They often pretend to be legitimate organizations, companies, or other entities. The targeted details usually include credit card details, ID card information, login credentials, and (or) social security numbers.
Some examples of phishing emails are "Chase - Account Verification", "OUTFRONT Email Quarantine", and "DHL Delivery Interrupted". It is important to know that fraudulent emails can be utilized to deliver malicious software.
How do spam campaigns infect computers?
Cybercriminals behind emails crafted to distribute malware aim to trick recipients into opening malicious attachments or links. Files attached to such emails can be of various types, for instance, executables, MS Office documents, PDFs, archives, and others. Not all malicious files infect computers upon opening.
For example, malicious MS Office documents cannot inject malware unless users enable macros commands. However, malicious executables can infect systems immediately after execution. Links in deceptive emails can lead to pages designed to trick users into downloading malware. These sites can also be crafted to download malware automatically.
How to avoid installation of malware?
Examine emails containing files or links. Avoid opening their contents if they are suspicious (e.g., irrelevant or unexpected) and sent from unknown addresses. Download programs and files from trustworthy websites (or app stores). Do not use pirated software, cracking tools, or key generators.
Furthermore, be careful when encountering pop-ups, ads, and similar content on suspicious websites. Do not interact with them while visiting such pages. Additionally, keep the operating system (and installed software) up to date and regularly scan your computer for threats.
If you have already opened malicious attachments, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate infiltrated malware.
The appearance of "Westside Auto Wholesale" scam email (GIF):
Text presented in the "Westside Auto Wholesale" email letter:
Subject:
WESTSIDE AUTO WHOLESALE
Tash Passaris sent you a document to review and sign.
VIEW COMPLETED DOCUMENT
Tash Passaris
tash.passaris@westsideauto.com-
Complete with DocuSign: Digital Signature Consent Form v.1.2.pdf
Thank You, Tash Passaris
Powered by
DocuSign
Screenshot of the phishing website:
Instant automatic malware removal:
Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced IT skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of malware. Download it by clicking the button below:
▼ 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 Fake Westside Auto Wholesale 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?
In phishing attacks, scammers send out large volumes of emails to thousands of recipients. These emails contain generic, non-personalized content.
I have provided my personal information when tricked by this email, what should I do?
If you have provided your email account login credentials in response to a phishing email, change the password as soon as possible. Also, change the passwords of other accounts that may be compromised.
I have downloaded and opened a malicious file attached to this email, is my computer infected?
If the file was an executable, then it is highly likely that your system is infected. However, if it was a document (.pdf, .doc, or similar), you might have avoided the infection, as simply opening the document is sometimes insufficient for malware to infiltrate the system.
I have read the email but didn't open the attachment, is my computer infected?
Opening an email alone is generally safe and will not harm your system. The danger lies in clicking on links within the email or opening any attached files.
Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections that were present in email attachment?
Yes, Combo Cleaner can detect and remove nearly all known malware. However, since advanced malware can conceal itself deep within the system, it is crucial to run a full system scan for comprehensive detection and elimination.
Outstanding!
▼ Show Discussion