Avoid getting scammed by fake "Beneficiary Of Will" emails

What kind of email is "Beneficiary Of Will"?

After reading this "Beneficiary Of Will" email, we determined that it is spam. This phishing letter aims to entice the recipient into disclosing their personally identifiable information by claiming that they were named as a beneficiary in a Will to receive an exorbitant amount of money.

"Beneficiary Of Will" email scam overview

The spam email with the subject "27/09/2024" (likely varies to coincide with the current date) states that the reverend of the Catholic Church of Saint James in Marylebone, London – has passed away. The late reverend's fellow clergyman is supposedly contacting the recipient.

Before the American-born member of the clergy had passed away from cancer, he had named the recipient as the sole beneficiary in his Will. Thus, the recipient is entitled to 5.5 million USD. Allegedly, the recipient was chosen randomly with the aid of Microsoft.

It must be stressed that the claims made by this scam email are false, and this mail is not associated with any public figures or real organizations, companies, or other entities.

The email requests the recipient to provide their personal information so they can receive the funds bequeathed to them. Targeted data includes their full name, age, occupation, address, valid ID copy, telephone number, and interestingly – their next of kin.

With this information in the scammers' possession, they can carry out various fraudulent activities, including stealing the victim's identity. As this spam mail mentions banking transactions, the cyber criminals might also ask that the recipient disclose their financial data (e.g., online bank log-in credentials, banking account details, credit card numbers, etc.).

Hence, by trusting an email like "Beneficiary Of Will" – users can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and identity theft.

If you have disclosed your personally identifiable or finance-related information to scammers – immediately contact the appropriate authorities.

Threat Summary:

Name	"Beneficiary Of Will" phishing email
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Recipient has been named the beneficiary in a Will and is entitled to $5.5 million.
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

"Adobe - You Have Received New Files", "HelpDesk Password Confirmation", "DHL Pickup Confirmation", "Estimate Of The Cost And Availability", and "Bank Transfer Accounting Copy" are merely some of our latest articles on phishing emails.

These campaigns most commonly seek log-in credentials, personally identifiable information, and finance-related data. However, other scams are promoted through spam mail as well, and it is used to spread malware.

Recipients' interest and trust are gained through a variety of fraudulent claims, such as ones concerning inheritances, lotteries, financial schemes, purchases/invoices, business offers, account issues, expired passwords, security concerns, outdated/renewed subscriptions, and so forth.

Due to how prevalent this mail is and how well-crafted it can be – we highly recommend exercising caution with incoming emails, DMs/PMs, SMSes, and other messages.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Malware is often proliferated via spam campaigns. These emails/messages include malicious files as attachments or download links. Infectious files can be archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), executables (.exe, .run, etc.), documents (Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, PDF, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.

Once such a file is opened – the infection chain is initiated. Some formats need extra interaction to jumpstart 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 files or links.

How to avoid installation of malware?

It is essential to treat incoming mail with caution. Attachments or links found in suspicious/irrelevant emails or other messages must not be opened, as they can be harmful or virulent.

However, malware is spread using various methods. Therefore, we recommend being vigilant while browsing since fraudulent and malicious online content usually appears genuine and harmless.

Furthermore, all downloads must be performed from official and verified sources. Another recommendation is to activate and update software using functions/tools provided by legitimate developers, as illegal activation tools ("cracks") and third-party updates may contain malware.

We must stress the importance of having a reputable anti-virus installed and kept updated. 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 "Beneficiary Of Will" spam email letter:

Subject: 27/09/2024

Dear Beloved,

My name is Rev. Father Anthony William from St' James Catholic Church Cathedral London, United Kingdom, I wish to inform you that we lost Rev. fr. Kennedy Johnson. Late Rev. Fr. Kennedy Johnson died on 10th JUNE, 2024, he was an Orphan from Pontiac Michigan, the United State of America, but nationalized in St' James Catholic Church Cathedral London , United Kingdom.

Before his death, he made a will and gave an instruction to contact you Via your email address when he died as his Next of Kin. I am glad to inform you of the late Rev. Father. Kennedy Johnson made you the beneficiary of his will at the sum of $5.500.000.00 USD and I know you might be wondering how late Rev. Father Kennedy Johnson made you the beneficiary of his WILL.

He made a random sampling of many people's email addresses as his spirit directed him, by the help of MICROSOFT INTERNATIONAL FIRM and yours came out as a draw before Leukemia took him. That's how you were picked as his sole beneficiary to be contacted after he passed on and the memorial service completed.

Send below details to me so that i can forward it to the Royal Bank Of Scotland, United Kingdom, for claim / release of your fund.

Full names:
Contact address:
Age:
Occupation:
Next of kin:
Valid ID:
private phone number:

Thank you & remain blessed,
Rev. Father. Anthony Williams

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 "Beneficiary Of Will" 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?

Even if spam emails include relevant details, they are not personal. This mail is distributed in large-scale operations – hence, thousands of users receive identical (or incredibly similar) emails.

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

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

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

Opening/Reading an email poses no infection threat; 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?

If the opened file was an executable (.exe, .run, etc.) – most likely, yes – your device was compromised. However, you might have avoided this if it was a document (.doc, .xls, .pdf, .one, etc.). These formats may require additional actions (e.g., enabling macros, clicking embedded content, etc.) to initiate system infection processes.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner is designed to scan computers and remove all kinds of threats. It is capable of detecting and eliminating most of the known malware infections. Remember that high-end malicious programs usually hide deep within systems – hence, performing a full system scan is essential.

▼ Show Discussion