Do not trust fake "Webmail - Messages Are Yet To Reach Your Mailbox" emails
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on
What kind of email is "Webmail - Messages Are Yet To Reach Your Mailbox"?
After inspecting this "Webmail - Messages Are Yet To Reach Your Mailbox" email, we determined that it is spam. This mail promotes a phishing scam wherein recipients are lured into visiting a fake sign-in page targeting email account log-in credentials.
It must be stressed that the information in this message is false, and this mail is not associated with any legitimate service providers or other entities.
"Webmail - Messages Are Yet To Reach Your Mailbox" email scam overview
The spam email with the subject "Pending Mailbox Delivery" (may vary) states that three messages have failed to reach the recipient's inbox. It must be reiterated that this claim is false, and this scam mail is in no way associated with any genuine service providers or other entities.
Once the "view messages" button is pressed, it results in a redirect to a phishing website. It is presented as a sign-in page, and log-in credentials entered into it are exposed.
Scammers are particularly interested in email accounts, as they tend to contain incredibly sensitive information and may open an avenue for hijacking the platforms/services registered through them.
To expand upon how the unauthorized access may be abused, scammers can steal account owners' identities (e.g., emails, social networking/media, messengers, etc.) and ask for loans or donations from contacts/friends/followers, promote scams, and spread malware by sharing malicious links/files.
Furthermore, stolen finance-related accounts (e.g., online banking, e-commerce, money transferring, digital wallets, etc.) can be used to make fraudulent transactions and online purchases.
To summarize, by trusting an email like "Webmail - Messages Are Yet To Reach Your Mailbox" – users can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and identity theft.
If you have already disclosed your log-in credentials – immediately change the passwords of all possibly compromised accounts and contact their official support.
Name | "Webmail - Messages Are Yet To Reach Your Mailbox" phishing email |
Threat Type | Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud |
Fake Claim | Multiple messages have failed to reach the recipient's inbox. |
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
We have investigated thousands of spam campaigns; "Cloudflare - Important Account Update", "Webmail - Email Version Upgrade", "Your Email Certificate Has Expired", and "World Bank Group - Overdue Payment" are just some examples of phishing emails.
In addition to log-in credentials of various accounts, these messages commonly target personally identifiable information and finance-related data.
While the widely held belief that spam emails are poorly written and riddled with mistakes is not untrue, it is not always the case. This mail can be competently put together and even believably disguised as messages from legitimate service providers, companies, institutions, organizations, authorities, and other entities.
How do spam campaigns infect computers?
Spam campaigns proliferate malware by distributing malicious files as attachments or download links. These files can be documents (PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), executables (.exe, .run, etc.), archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.
Merely opening an infectious file can be enough to trigger malware download/installation. However, some formats require additional user interaction to initiate system infection processes. For example, Microsoft Office files need users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/contact), 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. We advise against opening attachments or links found in suspicious/irrelevant mail, as they can be harmful or virulent.
It must be mentioned that malware is not spread only through spam mail. Therefore, we recommend being careful while browsing since fake and malicious online content usually appears genuine and harmless.
Another recommendation is to download only from official and trustworthy sources. Additionally, all programs must be activated and updated using legitimate functions/tools, as illegal activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updaters can contain malware.
We must emphasize the importance of having a reputable anti-virus installed and kept updated. Security software must be used to perform 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 "Webmail - Messages Are Yet To Reach Your Mailbox" spam email letter:
Subject: Pending Mailbox Delivery
Webmail
You have (3) important messages that are yet to reach your mailbox.
Priority: High
Customer ID Email: -
Details: This alert is triggered when incoming messages are held and yet to be delivered to your inbox.
view messages
Best Regards,
Cpanel Roundcube Horde Webmail Customer Service
© 2024 cPanel, L.L.C.
Screenshot of the phishing website promoted by this spam campaign:
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Quick menu:
- What is "Webmail - Messages Are Yet To Reach Your Mailbox" 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 even if they include details relevant to the recipients. Cyber criminals distribute this mail 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 provided your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all possibly exposed 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 card numbers, etc.) – immediately contact the corresponding authorities.
I have read a spam email but didn't open the attachment, is my computer infected?
Opening/Reading an email poses no infection threat; devices 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?
File formats can influence infection success rates. Merely opening a file can be enough to initiate malware download/installation; this is true of executables (.exe, .run, etc.). However, some formats require additional actions to jumpstart infection chains. For example, documents (.doc, .xls, .one, .pdf, etc.) may need users to enable macros, click embedded content, or perform other actions.
Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?
Combo Cleaner is designed to scan systems and eliminate all manner of threats. It can detect and remove practically all known malware infections. It must be stressed that performing a complete system scan is paramount since sophisticated malicious programs tend to hide deep within systems.
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