Avoid losing your email account via fake "New Project Site" emails

What kind of email is "New Project Site"?

Our inspection of the "New Project Site" email revealed that it is spam. It is presented as a potential purchase order. The purpose is to deceive recipients into providing their email log-in credentials to a phishing website. Victims of this scam mail can experience various severe issues by having their email account stolen through it.

"New Project Site" email scam overview

The spam email with the subject "PO #2425 fro GSDC Project Supplies" (may vary) requests the recipient to confirm whether they can provide supplies to the sender's new project. The recipient is asked to indicate their best prices and suggest alternatives for out-of-stock products.

It must be stressed that all the information in this email is false, and it is in no way associated with any real individuals or legitimate entities.

After the "View Purchase Order" link is pressed, it redirects to a phishing website. The promoted page is presented as a cloud storage portal hosting a file titled "Payment_Receipt.pdf". The webpage needs the user to provide their email log-in credentials (passwords) to access the nonexistent document.

Phishing sites record entered information and send it to scammers. Hence, by attempting to access the lure document, victims expose their email accounts. They typically contain sensitive information that could be variously abused, including for blackmail.

Additionally, cyber criminals might gain access to the accounts, platforms, and services registered through the stolen email. To expand upon this, scammers can steal account owners' identities (e.g., emails, social media, messengers, etc.) and ask the contacts/friends/followers for loans or donations, promote scams, and proliferate malware by sharing malicious files/links.

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

To summarize, by trusting an email like "New Project Site" – users can experience serious privacy issues, financial losses, and identity theft.

If you have entered your log-in credentials into a phishing site – immediately change the passwords of all possibly exposed accounts and contact their official support.

Threat Summary:

Name	"New Project Site" phishing email
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Recipient is requested to review the potential purchase order and provide relevant information.
Related Domains	acctcheck[.]top
Detection Names (acctcheck[.]top)	Combo Cleaner (Malware), CRDF (Malicious), G-Data (Malware), Seclookup (Malicious), Sophos (Malware), 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. ▼ 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

"Invoice Online Document Is Ready", "Pending Emails On Server", and "Verify Delivery Error" are merely a couple of our newest articles on phishing spam campaigns.

Aside from log-in credentials, these emails commonly seek personally identifiable data and finance-related information. However, various scams are endorsed via spam mail, and it is used to spread malware.

Due to how widespread spam mail is and how well-disguised it can be – we highly recommend approaching incoming emails, DMs/PMs, SMSes, and other messages with caution.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Spam campaigns proliferate malware by distributing infectious files as attachments or download links. These files can be documents (PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), executables (.exe, .run, etc.), archives (RAR, ZIP, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.

Once a malicious file is opened – the malware download/installation is jumpstarted. Some formats need extra actions to initiate system infection chains. 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?

Incoming emails and other messages must be approached with caution. We advise against opening attachments or links present in dubious/irrelevant mail, as they can be virulent.

However, malware is not proliferated exclusively via spam messages. Therefore, we recommend being careful while browsing, as fake and malicious online content usually appears genuine and harmless.

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

It is essential 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 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 "New Project Site" spam email letter:

Subject: PO #2425 fro GSDC Project Supplies

Good day Sir,

Reminder!!

Kindly conirm if you can supply the following for our new Project site.

View Purchase Order

We will appreciste your best prices for the above while we are open to your suggestions of alternatives for those not in stock.

Note: ETA should be max 6weeks.

Regards,
Kosmathy O.
Q.M. Industries S.B.
No 23, Jalan Selat Selatan 14,
Persiaran Selat Pandamaran,
42000 Pelabuhan Klang Selangor Darul Ehsan.
Tel : +603-3163 1632 / 012 338 6364

Screenshot of the phishing website promoted by the "New Project Site" spam campaign:

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 "New Project Site" 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. This mail is sent out in mass-scale campaigns – therefore, thousands of users receive identical (or incredibly similar) messages.

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

If you have provided your log-in credentials – immediately change the passwords of all possibly compromised accounts and inform their official support. However, if you have disclosed other private information (e.g., ID card details, passport photos/scans, credit/debit card numbers, etc.) – contact the appropriate authorities without delay.

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

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?

The file format might influence infection rates. Executables (.exe, .run, etc.) trigger software (including malware) download/installation almost without fail once opened. Some other formats – like documents (.doc, .xls, .pdf, etc.) – may need additional interaction to initiate infection chains. Hence, the infection might only be triggered after macro commands are enabled, embedded content is clicked, etc.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner is capable of detecting and eliminating most of the known malware infections. It must be emphasized that performing a full system scan is crucial since sophisticated malicious programs typically hide deep within systems.

▼ Show Discussion