Avoid having your email account stolen via fake "Proton.me" emails
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on (updated)
What kind of email is "Proton.me"?
After inspecting this "Proton.me" email, we determined that it is fake. This spam message claims that several emails were withheld from reaching the recipient's inbox. This campaign lures victims into visiting a phishing website targeting account log-in credentials by enticing them with the supposed ability to review the nonexistent messages.
"Proton.me" email scam overview
The spam email with the subject "Notification: Messages Held for Security Review" (may vary) informs the recipient that some of their messages were affected due to the implementation of new policies. These emails were withheld for review as a security measure. The recipient can manage their inbox by reviewing the imaginary messages.
It must be stressed that the claims made by this email are false, and this mail is not associated with Proton Mail or any other legitimate service providers.
After the "Review Held Messages" button is pressed, it results in a redirect to a phishing site disguised as an email account sign-in page. By attempting to sign in through this webpage, victims unintentionally reveal their email log-in credentials to scammers.
These accounts are of particular interest to cyber criminals, as they tend to contain highly sensitive information. Additionally, criminals might be able to gain access to the accounts, platforms, and services registered via the compromised email.
To expand upon how the unauthorized access can be abused, scammers can steal account owners' identities (e.g., emails, social networking/media, messengers, chats, etc.) and ask contacts/friends/followers for loans or donations, endorse scams, and spread malware by sharing malicious files/links.
What is more, hijacked finance-related accounts (e.g., online banking, e-commerce, digital wallets, money transferring, etc.) can be used to make fraudulent transactions and online purchases.
To summarize, by trusting an email like "Proton.me" – users can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and identity theft.
If you have already provided your log-in credentials to a phishing website – immediately change the passwords of all possibly compromised accounts and inform their official support.
| Name | "Proton.me" phishing email |
| Threat Type | Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud |
| Fake Claim | Emails are withheld for review due to security concerns. |
| Disguise | Proton Mail |
| Related Domains | officemailfix[.]com |
| Detection Names (officemailfix[.]com) | Combo Cleaner (Malware), Fortinet (Phishing), G-Data (Malware), Kaspersky (Phishing), Sophos (Phishing), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal) |
| Serving IP Address (officemailfix[.]com) | 64.225.7.21 |
| 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. |
Phishing spam campaign examples
"Your Netflix Subscription Is Expiring Soon", "Email Password Expiration", "404 Mail Delivery Failed", and "Fifth Third Bank email scam" are just a few of our latest articles on phishing emails.
Aside from log-in credentials, these campaigns commonly seek personally identifiable information and finance-related data. Other scams are also promoted through spam mail, and it is used to proliferate malware.
Due to how widespread spam emails are and how well-crafted they can be – we strongly recommend exercising caution with incoming emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, and other messages.
How do spam campaigns infect computers?
Spam campaigns spread malware by distributing infectious files as attachments or download links. These files come in various formats, e.g., 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 infection chain is jumpstarted. However, some formats require additional user interaction to initiate malware download/installation. For example, Microsoft Office files need users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), while OneNote documents require them to click on embedded links or files.
How to avoid installation of malware?
It is essential to approach incoming emails and other messages with caution. Attachments or links present in suspicious/irrelevant mail must not be opened, as they can be infectious.
It must be mentioned that malware is proliferated using various techniques. Therefore, we recommend being careful while browsing since the Internet is full of well-disguised fraudulent and dangerous content.
Another recommendation is to download only from official and verified channels. Software must be activated and updated using functions/tools provided by legitimate developers, 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 "Proton.me" spam email letter:
Subject: Notification: Messages Held for Security Review
This email has been verified by proton.me's automated system.
Hello -,
We have recently implemented updates to our IMAP policy, which may have temporarily affected some messages in your inbox. As part of our commitment to ensuring your account's security, we've held certain emails for review.
Please take a moment to review these emails and manage your inbox to ensure everything is in order:
Review Held Messages
Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter and for your continued support.
Best regards,
The proton.me Support Team
If you have any questions, please contact our support team.
© 2024 proton.me. All rights reserved.
Screenshot of the phishing website promoted by this spam campaign:
Appearance of this phishing website (GIF):
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Quick menu:
- What is "Proton.me" 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 may include, they are not personal. Cyber criminals distribute 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 exposed accounts and inform their official support. However, if the provided information was of a different personal nature (e.g., ID card details, 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?
No, reading an email poses no infection threat. Systems are compromised 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 the device was infected 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 the infection if it was a document (.doc, .xls, .pdf, etc.). These formats may require additional actions (e.g., enabling macro commands, 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 remove practically all known malware infections. It must be stressed that performing a complete system scan is essential since sophisticated malicious programs tend to hide deep within systems.
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