How to spot scams like "Hosting Space Limit Notification"
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on
What kind of scam is "Hosting Space Limit Notification"?
We have inspected the email and found that it is a phishing attempt. It is disguised as a notification from an email service provider to trick recipients into opening a fake web page. The purpose of this scam email is to steal personal information. Recipients should ignore this and similar emails.
More about the "Hosting Space Limit Notification" scam email
This phishing email imitates a hosting space limit notification. It claims that the recipient's domain is nearing its storage limit. The email informs the user that their current usage is 80% and provides a link to "Manage Storage". The email encourages the recipient to click and free up space or request more storage.
It also warns of potential disruptions to email service if no action is taken. The email is designed to trick users into clicking on the link, which leads to a phishing site that steals personal information. This phishing page imitates the design of the recipient's email service provider. For instance, if the recipient uses Gmail, the site will mimic the login page.
The goal is to steal email account login credentials. If this information is stolen, scammers can access an email account and spread the same or other scams, send spam, or emails containing malicious files. Also, scammers may harvest more personal information from the victim's emails.
Moreover, they may attempt to access other accounts, and if successful, this could lead to even more problems. Additionally, scammers may sell the obtained information to third parties (e.g., other cybercriminals). Thus, it is highly advisable to be careful with suspicious emails containing files or links.
| Name | Hosting Space Limit Notification Email Scam |
| Threat Type | Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud |
| Fake Claim | Recipient's domain is nearing its storage limit |
| Disguise | Notification from the 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
These scams often involve fake notifications about account issues, system errors, or security threats. They urge users to click links or open attachments. These scams can lead to phishing attacks, where sensitive data such as login credentials or financial details are stolen. Sometimes, the scammers may attempt to infect the system with malware.
Examples of similar scams are "Your Emails Will No Longer Be Delivered", "Payment Schedule Document", and "Transfer On Death".
How do spam campaigns infect computers?
Threat actors deliver malware via email by including malicious files or links in their messages. Some attachments can infect a system instantly when opened, while others may need user interaction, like enabling macros in a compromised document, to activate the malware.
Cybercriminals usually use PDFs, MS Office documents, script files, archives, and executables to trick users into executing malware. When they include links in their emails, opening these links can trigger an automatic malware download or direct users to harmful websites designed to trick them into downloading malicious software.
How to avoid installation of malware?
Always download software and files from trusted sources, like official websites or reputable app stores. Be cautious of unexpected or irrelevant emails from unknown senders with links or attachments in them. Avoid interacting with advertisements, links, pop-ups, buttons, and similar content on untrustworthy sites.
Do not agree to get notifications from suspicious websites. Keep your operating system and apps up to date, and run regular scans with a reliable security tool 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 "Hosting Space Limit Notification" email letter:
Subject: ******** Space alert: The hosting ******** is almost out of space.
Hosting Space Limit Notification - ********Dear User,
The domain ******** is nearing its storage limit.
Current Usage: 80% (1.56 GB of 1.95 GB)
Total Files: 37,097To prevent email service disruptions, please free up space or request an increase in storage capacity.
Manage StorageIf no action is taken, you may experience issues sending and receiving emails.
Generated on Thursday, March 13, 2025, at 07:27:34 UTC.
This is an automated message. Do not reply.
© 2025 cPanel, L.L.C.
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Quick menu:
- What is Hosting Space Limit Notification 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 send the same email to thousands of recipients, hoping to trick at least someone. These messages are typically generic - they do not include names, surnames, or similar details.
I have provided my personal information when tricked by this email, what should I do?
If scammers have obtained your email account login credentials, change the compromised password (or passwords) and notify your email service provider.
I have downloaded and opened a malicious file attached to an email, is my computer infected?
The likelihood of a system being compromised varies based on the file type. Executable files can cause immediate infections upon opening, while documents may need additional steps (like enabling macros) before the malware can infect computers.
I have read the email but did not open the attachment, is my computer infected?
Opening an email itself is safe, but clicking links or opening attachments in suspicious emails can lead to computer infections.
Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections that were present in email attachment?
Combo Cleaner can identify and remove most known malware, but advanced threats may be deeply embedded in the system. A complete scan is necessary to detect and eliminate these hidden infections.
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