Avoid getting scammed by fake "Fifth Third Bank" emails

What kind of email is "Fifth Third Bank"?

Upon examining this "Fifth Third Bank" email, we determined that it is fake. This phishing email targets Fifth Third Bank (5/3 Bank) account log-in credentials. The letter tricks recipients into disclosing this data by informing them of a bogus card purchase. It must be stressed that this email is not associated with the actual Fifth Third Bank.

"Fifth Third Bank" email scam overview

The spam email with the subject "Important Notification Alert: Action Required" (may vary) claims that the recipient's card was used to make a $94.30 purchase from Verizon. If the recipient does not recognize this activity, they are urged to press the "Stop" button.

It must be reiterated that the claims made by this email are false, and this mail is not associated with the real Fifth Third Bank (5/3 Bank), Verizon Communications Inc., or any other legitimate entities.

This email endorses a fake Fifth Third Bank sign-in page. Information – log-in credentials – entered into this phishing website are recorded and sent to scammers, thus enabling them to steal the exposed account. Cyber criminals can use stolen finance-related accounts to make fraudulent transactions and online purchases. These accounts may also contain sensitive information, the exposuse of which could lead to severe privacy issues.

If you have provided your log-in credentials to a phishing site – immediately change the passwords of all possibly compromised accounts and inform their official support. It might also be necessary to contact the appropriate authorities.

Threat Summary:

Name	"Fifth Third Bank" phishing email
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Recipient's bank card was used to make $94.30 purchase.
Disguise	Fifth Third Bank (5/3 Bank)
Related Domains	historyfifty53.line[.]pm
Detection Names	Emsisoft (Phishing), ESET (Phishing), Fortinet (Phishing), Google Safebrowsing (Phishing), Netcraft (Malicious), 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

"Bank Of Scotland", "Trust Wallet - New Security Alert", "Beneficiary Of Will", "DHL Pickup Confirmation", "Bank Transfer Accounting Copy", "E-Fax Center", "Estimate Of The Cost And Availability", and "You Are Shortlisted For Tender" are just some of our latest articles on phishing emails.

Various lures are used to gain recipients' trust, such as claims relating to purchases, suspicious activity detections, account issues, business offers, outdated/renewed services, expired passwords, inheritances, lotteries, and so forth. However, spam mail is used for other scams aside from phishing. It is also utilized in malware distribution.

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

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Malware is commonly distributed via spam campaigns. These emails/messages can have infectious files attached to or linked inside them. Virulent files can be documents (PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), executables (.exe, .run, etc.), archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.

Merely opening such a file can be enough to initiate malware download/installation. However, some formats require additional user interaction to initiate infection processes. For example, Microsoft Office files need 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 essential to approach incoming emails and other messages with caution. Do not open attachments or links found in suspicious/irrelevant mail, as they can be harmful or infectious.

However, malware is not spread only through spam mail. Therefore, be careful while browsing since fake and malicious online content usually appears genuine and harmless.

Additionally, download only from official and verified channels. Activate and update software using functions/tools provided by legitimate developers, as illegal product activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updates can contain malware.

It is paramount for device integrity and user safety to have a reputable anti-virus installed and kept updated. Security programs must be used to perform regular system scans and to remove detected threats. 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 "Fifth Third Bank" spam email letter:

Subject: Important Notification Alert: Action Required

Fifth Third Bank

Your card was used at VERIZON at the amount of $94.30.
Click to STOP if this wasn't you.

Stop

Copyright 2024 Fifth Third Bank, National Association. All Rights Reserved.

Screenshot of the fake Fifth Third Bank sign-in website promoted by this spam campaign:

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Quick menu:

• What is "Fifth Third Bank" 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, regardless of any relevant information that they may include. This mail is sent out in mass-scale operations – therefore, 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 provided your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all potentially 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 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.

I have downloaded and opened a file attached to a spam email, is my computer infected?

Whether the infection occurred might depend on the format of the opened file. If it was an executable (.exe, .run, etc.) – most likely, yes. However, you might have avoided an infection if it was a document (.doc, .xls, .pdf, etc.). These formats may require additional actions to initiate malware download/installation (e.g., enabling macros, clicking embedded content, 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 stressed that performing a full system scan is crucial since high-end malicious programs tend to hide deep within systems.

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