Do not trust fake "Microsoft Office 365 - Password Notification" emails

What kind of email is "Microsoft Office 365 - Password Notification"?

After examining this "Microsoft Office 365 - Password Notification" email, we determined that it is fake. The message alerts recipients that their Microsoft 365 account passwords will expire soon.

It must be stressed that this email is not associated with Microsoft or any of the corporation's products and services. The purpose of this spam campaign is to deceive recipients into disclosing their Microsoft 365 account log-in credentials to a phishing website.

"Microsoft Office 365 - Password Notification" email scam overview

The scam email with the subject "Password Notification." (may vary) is presented as a notification concerning Microsoft 365. The letter claims that the recipient's account password will expire tomorrow. It instructs to follow the link in the email to keep the same password.

It must be reiterated that the information in this message is false, and this mail is not associated with Microsoft 365 or the Microsoft Corporation.

The "Keep Account Password" button redirects to a phishing website. It is presented as the sign-in page for Microsoft 365, and log-in credentials entered into it are recorded. Microsoft 365 offers collaboration and cloud-based services that are often used for business-related purposes.

Sensitive information found therein can be variously misused, such as for blackmail, corporate espionage, sale to third-parties, and so on. Victims who have a habit of reusing the same passwords risk having their other accounts and platforms stolen.

To expand upon how the unauthorized access can be abused, scammers may steal the account owners' identities (e.g., collaboration platforms, emails, social networking, messengers, etc.) and ask for loans or donations from contacts/friends/followers, endorse scams, and spread malware by sharing malicious links/files.

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

In summary, victims of scam mail like "Microsoft Office 365 - Password Notification" can experience system infections, severe privacy issues, financial losses, and even identity theft.

If you have provided your log-in credentials – immediately change the passwords of all potentially exposed accounts and contact their official support.

Threat Summary:

Name	"Microsoft Office 365 - Password Notification" phishing email
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Recipient's Microsoft 365 account password will expire soon.
Disguise	Microsoft 365
Related Domains	squad[.]cl
Detection Names (squad[.]cl)	Combo Cleaner (Malware), Cluster25 (Phishing) ESET (Phishing), Fortinet (Phishing), Heimdal Security (Phishing), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal)
Serving IP Address (squad[.]cl)	186.64.114.180
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

"SurePayroll", "Reserve Server", "Email Has Been Suspended Due To Policy Violations", and "Invoice Online Document Is Ready" are merely a few examples of phishing emails.

Aside from log-in credentials, these letters target personally identifiable information and finance-related data. However, other scams are endorsed through spam mail, and it is used in malware proliferation.

Spam messages are often poorly put together and full of mistakes, but they can also be competently made and even believably disguised as mail from legitimate entities (e.g., service providers, companies, organizations, authorities, etc.).

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

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

The infection process is triggered once such a file is opened. Some formats need additional actions to begin downloading/installing malware. For example, Microsoft Office files require users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), while OneNote documents require them to click embedded links or files.

How to avoid installation of malware?

It is important to be careful with incoming emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, and other messages. Do not open attachments or links found in suspicious/irrelevant mail, as they can be harmful or virulent.

However, malware is proliferated using various methods. Therefore, be vigilant when browsing since the Internet is rife with well-disguised fraudulent and malicious content.

Furthermore, all downloads must be made from official and verified sources. Another recommendation is to activate and update software using genuine functions/tools, as illegal activation tools ("cracks") and third-party updaters can contain malware.

We must emphasize the importance of having 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 "Microsoft Office 365 - Password Notification" spam email letter:

Subject: Password Notification.

Microsoft
Office 365

Password Notification

Your email account password is expiring Tomorrow.
Use below instruction to keep account password.

Keep Account Password

Note: Action This effect may take short period of time 08/10/2024

Thanks,
The Microsoft account team

Screenshot of the fake Microsoft 365 sign-in webpage promoted by this 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 "Microsoft Office 365 - Password Notification" 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 information relevant to the recipient. Cyber criminals send these messages out 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 log-in credentials – immediately change the passwords of all potentially exposed accounts. However, if you've provided other private data (e.g., ID card details, passport scans/photos, credit 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?

No, just 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?

Whether your system was infected might depend on the opened file's format. Executables (.exe, .run, etc.) cause infections almost without fail. However, some formats may need more than being opened to initiate malware download/installation. For example, documents (.doc, .xls, .one, .pdf, etc.) might need users to enable macro commands or click on embedded files/links.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner is capable of detecting and eliminating nearly all known malware infections. Note that performing a complete system scan is crucial since sophisticated malicious programs usually hide deep within systems.

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