How to recognize scams like the fake email from Booking.com

What is "Booking.com scam"?

This is a phishing attempt disguised as a notification from booking.com regarding a complaint raised by a lodger. Scammers behind this scam use emails with links to fake websites or attachments with links to fake sites. The purpose of the scam is to promote a social engineering tactic known as ClickFix.

More about the fake booking.com scam email

One of the tactics used in this scam is to lure recipients into opening the attached file and following the instructions presented on the site that is included in the attachment. The attached file contains a deceptive message claiming that a customer has lodged a complaint about a past stay at the hotel.

It asks the recipient to review the complaint and contact the customer by clicking a link ("View Complaint") provided in the message. The message emphasizes the need for quick action to resolve the issue and offers further assistance if needed.

Another tactic used in this scam (a second email variant) is to trick the recipient into "replying" to the received message. That fraudulent message appears to be from someone named Sammie Guerra, who is inquiring about the double rooms' details. It mentions the interest in information regarding Wi-Fi availability and the view from the window.

In both scenarios, clicking the provided links leads to fake websites that use the ClickFix technique. This tactic distributes malware by tricking victims into copying a command and executing it via the Run command or PowerShell. Victims are lured with fake fixes for issues like document access or software installation.

Once executed, the command deploys malware (e.g., Lumma Stealer). Thus, it is important to recognize scam emails and avoid clicking links or opening files presented in them.

Now it is worth noting that email scams in general are likely to promote phishing sites. Therefore, there's a high chance that some of those websites will aim for personal information (e.g., ask to enter login details of some sort), rather than employing the ClickFix tactic.

Threat Summary:

Name	Booking.com Email Scam
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	A lodger has raised a complaint regarding their past stay
Related Domains	fixecondfirbook[.]info, bookviewreserve[.]com
Detection Names (fixecondfirbook[.]info)	AlphaSOC (Malware), Combo Cleaner (Malware), ESET (Phishing), Kaspersky (Phishing), Sophos (Malware), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal)
Detection Names (bookviewreserve[.]co)	AlphaSOC (Malware), Combo Cleaner (Malware), Certego (Malicious), Fortinet (Malware), Webroot (Malicious), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal)
Disguise	Notification from booking.com
Symptoms	Generic greeting, urgent language, suspicious links, grammatical errors.
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.

Similar scam emails in general

These emails use deception and urgency to trick recipients into clicking harmful links or opening attachments. They often appear to come from trusted sources, making it easy to fall for the scam. Avoid interacting with suspicious emails to protect your security. Examples of deceptive emails are "TNT Express", "New Web Browser Just Signed In", and "Claim Inheritance Money".

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Malware infects computers when users engage with malicious links or open infected attachments, such as PDFs, documents, or executable files. Once these files are opened or additional actions are taken, the malware can execute. Clicking on links may lead to harmful websites that either automatically download malware or trick users into downloading it themselves.

Scam emails used to promote the ClickFix scheme lead users to fake websites. Victims are tricked into copying and running a command through the Run command or PowerShell, often under the guise of fixing an issue. Once executed, the command infects computers with malware.

How to avoid installation of malware?

Be cautious with unexpected emails from unknown or suspicious sources, and avoid opening attachments or clicking links included in such emails. Never download pirated software or cracking tools —always use official sources (official sites or app stores) when willing to download software or files.

Avoid clicking ads, pop-ups, or links on untrustworthy websites. Keep your operating system and software up to date, use trusted security programs, and perform regular system scans to protect your device. 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 fake document attached to a deceptive email:

Booking.com

Dear Hotel Team,
A lodger has raised a complaint regarding their past stay at your
property. The complaint includes details about incidents involving your
team and accommodation.
You can go through the submitted grievance and get in touch with the
customer at your earliest convenience to respond to their grievances by
clicking the link provided.
View Complaint
We politely ask that you handle this complaint as soon as possible to
ensure a satisfactory resolution for both involved parties.
If you seek any guidance, please do not wait to get in touch.
With best wishes,
The Booking.com Team
© 1996-2024 Booking.com. All rights reserved.
This email was sent by Booking.com, Oosterdokskade 163, 1011 DL, Amsterdam,
Netherlands.

Deceptive website presented in this document:

The second fake email from Booking.com:

Text in this email:

Booking.com Confirmation number: 493-9229893
You have a new message from a guest
Client said:
Re: You have a message from Sammie Guerra
Hi,
Could  you provide detailed information about your double rooms? I'm interested in Wi-Fi availability and the view from the view?
Sent from my iPhone
[Reply]
© Copyright Booking.com 2024
This email was sent by Booking.com

Deceptiver website presented in this email:

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 Booking.com scam campaign?
• 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?

These emails are sent indiscriminately, with no specific targets. Scammers likely acquired your email address and used it to distribute their scam.

I have provided my personal information when tricked by a deceptive email, what should I do?

If you have shared your account credentials, make sure to update all compromised passwords. If you have given out other personal details, like credit card information or ID numbers, reach out to the appropriate authorities as soon as possible.

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

If you have downloaded and opened a malicious file from an email, your computer could be infected, depending on the file type. Executable files can trigger infections immediately, while other files, such as documents, typically require further action to activate malware.

I have read a deceptive email but did not open the attachment, is my computer infected?

Opening an email by itself is not harmful. Infections happen when you click links or open attachments within the email.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections that were present in email attachment?

Yes, Combo Cleaner can detect and remove most known malware infections. However, advanced malware may hide deeply within the system, so it is important to run a full system scan for thorough removal.

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