Avoid having your account stolen via fake "EFT Payment Overview" emails

What kind of email is "EFT Payment Overview"?

After inspecting the "EFT Payment Overview" email, we determined that it is spam. It is presented as a notification concerning a payment. This spam message aims to deceive recipients into providing their email account log-in credentials to a phishing file.

"EFT Payment Overview" email scam overview

The spam email with the subject "Remitance Advice EFT" (may vary) notifies the recipient that they can review the details of the EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer) payment that has been processed today.

As indicated in the introduction, the information provided in this email is false, and this mail is not associated with any legitimate service providers or other entities.

The HTML document – "INV_020863.html" (filename may vary) – attached to this email operates as a phishing file. It is disguised as a Microsoft Excel file; the document in the background is blurred, and the pop-up in the forefront instructs to – "Sign in to view the document" – (with email log-in credentials).

Phishing files record entered information and send it to scammers. Cyber criminals target emails since they typically contain incredibly sensitive information and may serve as a way to gain access to the accounts, platforms, and services registered through them.

For example, scammers can steal account owners' identities (e.g., emails, social networking, social media, etc.) and request loans or donations from contacts/friends/followers, promote scams, and proliferate malware by showing malicious links/files.

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

In summary, by trusting an email like "EFT Payment Overview" – users can experience serious privacy issues, financial losses, and even identity theft.

If you have already entered your log-in credentials into a phishing file/website – immediately change the passwords of all potentially compromised accounts and contact their official support.

Threat Summary:

Name	"EFT Payment Overview" phishing email
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Email contains an EFT payment overview.
Attachment(s)	INV_020863.html (filename may vary)
Detection Names (attachment)	Avast (Other:SNH-gen [Phish]), ESET-NOD32 (HTML/Phishing.Agent.GBJ), Fortinet (JS/Phishing.TLGM!tr), Microsoft (Trojan:HTML/Phish.HNDU!MTB), Varist (JS/Phish.BAC), Yandex (Trojan.AvsArher.bYuokr), 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

"Error Updating The Mail Server", "Your Invoice Has Been Paid", "Website Suspension In Progress", "Unusual Activities In Your Account", "New PDF File Received", and "Payment For All Pending Invoice(s)" are merely some of our latest articles on phishing emails.

Commonly targeted information includes various log-in credentials, personally identifiable details, and finance-related data. Other scams are also facilitated through spam mail, and it is used to distribute malware.

Spam emails are often poorly put together and riddled with grammatical/spelling errors – however, they can be competently written and even believably disguised as messages from genuine companies, service providers, organizations, authorities, and other entities.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

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

The infection chain is triggered once such a file is executed, run, or otherwise opened. Some formats need extra actions to initiate malware download/installation. For example, Microsoft Office files require users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), while OneNote documents need them to click embedded links or files.

How to avoid installation of malware?

We strongly recommend exercising caution with incoming emails, DMs/PMs, SMSes, and other messages. Attachments or links found in suspect/irrelevant mail must not be opened, as they can be harmful or infectious.

It must be mentioned that malware is not spread exclusively via spam mail. Therefore, we advise being vigilant when browsing since fake and malicious online content usually appears genuine and harmless.

Another recommendation is to download only from official and trustworthy sources. Additionally, software must be activated using functions/tools provided by legitimate developers, as illegal product activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updates may 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 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 "EFT Payment Overview" spam email letter:

Subject: Remitance Advice EFT

Payment Overview
An EFT Payment has been processed attached are the details for the payment processed today

Screenshot of the phishing file attached to this spam email "INV_020863.html":

Another variant of HTML attachment ("INV_02056.html"):

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Quick menu:

• What is "EFT Payment Overview" 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 spam emails include, they are not personal. Cyber criminals send out these messages 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 – 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, passport photos/scans, 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?

Merely 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 device was infected depends on the purpose of the file, e.g., phishing vs. malware infiltration. However, file formats may also impact infection success rates. Once opened, executables (.exe, .run, etc.) cause infections almost without fail. Some other formats – like documents (.doc, .xls, .pdf, etc.) – might need additional user interaction (e.g., enabling macros, clicking embedded content, etc.) to begin downloading/installing malware.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner can detect and eliminate most of the known malware infections. It must be stressed that performing a complete system scan is essential since sophisticated malicious programs usually hide deep within systems.

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