Do not trust fake "Avoid Mailbox Interruption" emails
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on
What kind of email is "Avoid Mailbox Interruption"?
The "Avoid Mailbox Interruption" email is spam. This fake message claims that incoming emails have been placed on hold. The goal of this mail is to trick recipients into visiting a phishing site that seeks to extract their account log-in credentials.
"Avoid Mailbox Interruption" email scam overview
This scam email states that incoming messages have been withheld for security reasons. The pending emails can be released into the inbox, and further service interruptions avoided by validating the account.
It must be stressed that the information in this email is false, and this mail is not associated with any genuine service providers.
The "VALIDATE NOW" button in this letter redirects to a phishing site that imitates the recipient's email sign-in page. Websites of this kind record entered data and send it to scammers. Stolen emails can be variously misused. They may contain highly sensitive information that could be used for blackmail or other nefarious purposes.
Additionally, cyber criminals might be able to steal the accounts, platforms, and services registered through the hijacked email. To expand upon how the unauthorized access can be abused, scammers steal account owners' identities (e.g., emails, social networking, social media, messengers, chats, etc.) and request loans or donations from contacts/friends/followers, promote scams, and proliferate malware by sharing malicious files/links.
Furthermore, stolen finance-related accounts (e.g., e-commerce, money transferring, digital wallets, online banking, etc.) can be used to make fraudulent transactions or online purchases.
In summary, by trusting an email like "Avoid Mailbox Interruption" – users can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and even identity theft.
If you have already disclosed your account credentials – immediately change the passwords of all potentially compromised accounts and contact their official support.
| Name | "Avoid Mailbox Interruption" phishing email |
| Threat Type | Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud |
| Fake Claim | Email account must be validated to receive pending messages and avoid further service interruptions. |
| 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
"American Express - Payment On Hold", "Staff Whose Employment Have Been Terminated", "You Have Pending UNSYNC Messages", and "Webmail - Messages Are Yet To Reach Your Mailbox" are merely a few of our newest articles on phishing campaigns.
These emails primarily target log-in credentials, personally identifiable details, and finance-related information. However, other scams are facilitated through spam mail as well, and it is used to spread malware.
While spam emails are often poorly written and riddled with mistakes, they can be competently crafted and even believably disguised as messages from legitimate entities (e.g., service providers, companies, organizations, institutions, authorities, etc.).
How do spam campaigns infect computers?
Spam campaigns are widely used in malware distribution. These emails/messages can include infectious files as attachments or download links. Virulent files come in various formats, e.g., documents (PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), executables (.exe, .run, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.
The infection chain is initiated once a malicious file is opened. However, some formats require additional interaction to begin downloading/installing malware. 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?
Incoming emails, DMs/PMs, SMSes, and other messages must be approached with caution. We advise against opening attachments or links present in suspicious/irrelevant mail, as they can be harmful or infectious.
It must be mentioned that malware is proliferated using various techniques. Therefore, we recommend being vigilant while browsing since the Internet is rife with deceptive and dangerous content.
Additionally, all downloads must be made from official and trustworthy channels. Software must be activated and updated using functions/tools provided by legitimate developers, 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 up-to-date. Security programs must be used to perform regular systems scans and to remove detected threats/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 "Avoid Mailbox Interruption" spam email letter:
Subject: Validate Your ********
Avoid Mailbox Interruption
Dear ********
Due to security reasons, Some of your incoming emails have been placed on hold.
To keep using your please approve for your mailbox to receive pending emails.
VALIDATE NOW
Screenshot of the phishing website promoted by the "Avoid Mailbox Interruption" spam campaign:
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Quick menu:
- What is "Avoid Mailbox Interruption" 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. These messages are sent out in massive 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 possibly exposed accounts and inform their official support without delay. And if you have disclosed other private information (e.g., passport photos/scans, ID card details, 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?
Reading an email will not initiate any malware download/installation processes; devices 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?
Whether your device was infected might depend on the format of the opened file. Once opened, executables (.exe, .run, etc.) cause infections almost without fail. However, some formats – like documents (.doc, .xls, .pdf, etc.) – might need additional user interaction. Hence, the infection chain is only triggered after macros are enabled, embedded content is clicked, or other actions are performed.
Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?
Combo Cleaner is designed to scan computers and eliminate all manner of threats. It can detect and remove most of the known malware infections. Remember that performing a complete system scan is essential since sophisticated malicious software tends to hide deep within systems.
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