How to identify fraudulent emails like "Your Email Certificate Has Expired"
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on
What is "Your Email Certificate Has Expired"?
Our team has inspected the email and learned that its purpose is to trick recipients into believing that there is a certain problem with their email account. This email is disguised as a notification from an email service provider. The scammers behind it seek to steal personal information from recipients.
More about the "Your Email Certificate Has Expired" scam email
This deceptive email informs the recipient that their email certificate has expired and that messages from customers cannot be delivered. It claims that the undelivered messages are stored in a cloud server folder. The email urges the recipient to follow instructions to view the messages and update their email certificate.
It also encourages the recipient to log in with their correct information to fix the error and confirm their current session. Clicking the provided link/button (labeled "See emails and Steps) opens a fake website masquerading as the Webmail sign-in page. On this site, visitors are requested to enter their password to sign in.
The passwords entered on this phishing page are sent to scammers who can use them to access email and possibly other accounts (if victims use the same login information for more than one account). Accessed email accounts can be used to send phishing emails and deliver malware to contacts or other people.
Also, scammers may harvest more personal information from emails stored in the victim's account. Moreover, the same login credentials could be used to access social media, banking, gaming, or other accounts. This could lead to financial loss, identity theft, and other issues. Additionally, scammers can sell the stolen information to other cybercriminals.
Overall, it is important to be careful with suspicious emails and not open files and links in emails of this kind.
Name | Your Email Certificate Has Expired Email Scam |
Threat Type | Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud |
Fake Claim | Recipient's email certificate has expired |
Related Domain | qcard.co[.]il |
Detection Names (qcard.co[.]il) | Antiy-AVL (Malicious), Combo Cleaner (Malware), CRDF (Malicious), Lionic (Phishing), Sophos (Phishing), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal) |
Disguise | Letter from an email service provider |
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. |
Similar scam emails in general
Phishing emails are deceptive messages that often use urgent language to trick recipients into acting quickly without examining them. These emails often include deceptive links or request personal information directly. Scammers use such emails to steal login credentials, credit card details, ID card information, or other details.
Examples of phishing emails are "Coinbase - Deposits Verification Request", "Important Invoice Information From Accounts", and "Blockchain.com - Verify Your Email Address". Deceptive emails can also be used to lure recipients into executing malware on their computers.
How do spam campaigns infect computers?
Threat actors distribute malware via email by including infected attachments or harmful links. When users open these attachments, such as documents, scripts, archives, executable files, etc., malware can enter the system. Some files, like infected Microsoft Office, require the user to enable certain features, like macros, for the malware to activate.
In other cases, malicious links in the emails may direct users to websites designed to either prompt them to download malware or automatically initiate the download without their knowledge. Overall, cybercriminals behind emails of this type seek to trick recipients into executing malware via malicious attachments or links.
How to avoid installation of malware?
Avoid opening attachments or clicking links from unfamiliar senders, particularly in unexpected or irrelevant emails. Do not trust pop-ups, ads, links, offers, buttons, etc., on shady websites. Download software and files from official pages or app stores. Avoid using other sources (e.g., dubious pages and P2P networks) and downloading pirated software or cracking tools.
Regularly scan your device with trusted security software, and ensure your operating system and apps are up to date to protect against potential threats. If you have already opened malicious attachments, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate infiltrated malware.
Text presented in the "Your Email Certificate Has Expired" email letter:
Subject: ********: E-mail Certificate Expiration Notice
Your Email Certificate on ******** has expiredDear Valued Customer,
This message is directed to your email, ********.
You are getting this message because your email Certificate has expired.Due to this error, some messages from your customers were unable to reach you and we have this messages stored in our cloud server folder.
Please, kindly follow the instruction below to read this mesages and update your email certificate for ********.
See emails and StepsMake sure you confirm your current login session by logging in with your correct information so that this error will be fixed.
Phishing website used in this scam:
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 Your Email Certificate Has Expired 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?
Scammers often send identical emails to a large number of people. Their emails are generic and impersonal. In most cases, scammers gather email addresses from data breaches and other sources.
I have provided my personal information when tricked by this email, what should I do?
Update your email account password and monitor it for any suspicious activity. Additionally, check other accounts that may share the same login credentials (and change their passwords if so).
I have downloaded and opened a file attached to an email, is my computer infected?
The risk of infection varies based on the file type. Executable files are more dangerous, while document files like .pdf or .doc are usually safer, as they do not automatically run malware unless the user takes extra steps to activate it.
I have read the email but did not open the attachment, is my computer infected?
Computers cannot be infected by emails. However, opening links and files in such emails can lead to computer infections.
Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections that were present in email attachment?
Combo Cleaner is effective at finding and removing almost all known malware. However, more advanced threats can conceal themselves deep within the system, so a full system scan may be required for complete removal.
▼ Show Discussion