Do not trust fake "Email Account Requires Verification" emails
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on
What kind of email is "Email Account Requires Verification"?
"Email Account Requires Verification" is a spam email. It makes false claims concerning a critical verification process, skipping which may result in users losing access to their mail accounts. This spam letter aims to steal recipients' email accounts by tricking them into providing their log-in credentials to a phishing website.
"Email Account Requires Verification" email scam overview
The scam email with the subject "[recipient's_email_address] requires complete verification" (may vary) informs that account verification is required and must be completed before the given date. If it is not finalized, the recipient can experience service interruptions and even risks losing their account. The spam letter warns that the verification link will expire after three days.
It must be emphasized that the information in "Email Account Requires Verification" is false, and this mail is not associated with any legitimate service providers or other entities.
The link in this letter leads to a phishing website bearing the old logo of the Zoho Office Suite. The fake page requests visitors to sign into their email account. Entering log-in credentials into this site exposes them to scammers.
Emails are highly prized by cyber criminals, as they tend to contain incredibly sensitive information and may serve as a gateway for gaining access to the accounts/platforms/services registered through them.
To expand upon the potential abuse, criminals can steal the identities of account owners (e.g., emails, social networking, messengers, etc.) and request loans or donations from contacts/friends/followers, endorse scams, and spread malware by sharing malicious links/files.
Additionally, hijacked finance-related accounts (e.g., e-commerce, online banking, digital wallets, etc.) can be used to make fraudulent transactions and online purchases.
In summary, by trusting an email like "Email Account Requires Verification" – users can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and even identity theft.
If you have already disclosed your account credentials – immediately change the passwords of all potentially exposed accounts and contact their official support.
| Name | "Email Account Requires Verification" phishing email |
| Threat Type | Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud |
| Fake Claim | Email account needs to be verified to avoid service interruptions or losing access. |
| Related Domains | accesser[.]click |
| Detection Names (accesser[.]click) | Fortinet (Spam), Sophos (Spam), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal) |
| 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
"Messages Have Been Blocked By Your Server", "Official Notification: Performance Evaluation Access", "SWIFT - Outward Wire Transfer Confirmation", and "Irrevocable Payment Order" are merely some of our latest articles on phishing spam campaigns. These emails primarily target log-in credentials, personally identifiable information, and finance-related data.
While the widely held belief that spam letters are shoddily crafted and full of grammatical/spelling errors is not untrue, it is not always the case. This mail can be competently made and even convincingly disguised as messages from legitimate entities (e.g., service providers, companies, institutions, authorities, etc.).
How do spam campaigns infect computers?
Cyber criminals commonly use spam campaigns to proliferate malware. These emails/messages can have malicious files attached to or linked inside them. Infectious files come in various formats, e.g., executables (.exe, .run, etc.), archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), documents (Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, PDF, etc.), JavaScript, and so forth.
Opening a virulent file can be enough to trigger the malware download/installation chain. However, some formats require additional actions to initiate system infection processes. 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.
How to avoid installation of malware?
Vigilance is crucial to device/user safety. Therefore, treat incoming emails, DMs/PMs/ SMSes, and other messages with caution. Do not open attachments or links found in dubious/irrelevant mail, as they can be harmful or infectious.
It must be mentioned that malware is not spread only through spam mail. Hence, be careful while browsing since the Internet is rife with well-disguised fraudulent and malicious content.
Additionally, download only from official and verified sources. Activate and update software using functions/tools provided by legitimate developers, as illegal product activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updates can contain malware.
We must stress the importance of having a reputable anti-virus installed and kept updated. Security programs must be used to perform 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 "Email Account Requires Verification" spam email letter:
Subject: ******** requires complete verification
Dear ********,
Your email account ******** requires verification from 29 Jul 2024. Please verify this email address before 31 Jul 2024 to avoid obstruction of service.
Verify email address
This link will expire in 3 days. If verification is not complete, you might lose your account.
For help, contact us through our Help center.
Screenshot of the phishing website promoted by the "Email Account Requires Verification" spam campaign:
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Quick menu:
- What is "Email Account Requires Verification" 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 details that they may include, spam emails are not personal. Cyber criminals distribute this mail in large-scale campaigns 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 provided your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all possibly compromised accounts and inform their official support without delay. However, if the disclosed information was of a different personal nature (e.g., ID card details, credit/debit card numbers, etc.) – immediately contact the appropriate authorities.
I have read a spam email but didn't open the attachment, is my computer infected?
Reading an email is harmless; devices 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?
File formats may influence the infection success rate. Executables (.exe, .run, etc.) cause infections almost without fail (once opened). Some other formats – like documents (.doc, .xls, .one, .pdf, etc.) – may need extra actions to initiate malware download/installation. For example, the infection process can occur only after the user enables macro commands, clicks embedded content, and so on.
Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?
Combo Cleaner can detect and eliminate practically all known malware infections. It must be mentioned that performing a full system scan is paramount since sophisticated malicious software typically hides deep within systems.
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