Avoid malware infections spread via "Chorus Union" emails

What is the "Chorus Union" email?

"Chorus Union" is the name of a malicious spam campaign designed to distribute Dridex banking malware. The scam emails sent through this spam campaign are disguised as impending invoices from "Chorus Union". These messages are intended to trick recipients into clicking the link presented within them, which will trigger download/installation of Dridex malware.

This malicious software operates by stealing online bank account details (e.g. log-ins, usernames, passwords, etc.). You are strongly advised against opening "Chorus Union" emails, as doing so can compromise system and user safety.

The scam email with the subject "Mobile Transaction 420531LA570659" begins by listing information supposedly pertaining to the recipients' "Chorus Union" invoice. The amount that needs to be paid is stated to be $696.00. The message urges people to provide payment at their earliest convenience.

The email gives thanks to the recipients for their business with "Chorus Union". The link is presented as that of a site/file, which must be used to manage the payment. When the "To manage click here" is pressed, the URL checks the users' IP addresses before proceeding.

If the VPNs or other addresses are found to be of no interest, users are redirected to a decoy website (e.g. ppsspp[.]org), however, if the aforementioned information is found to be relevant, the URL acts as a download link of a ZIP archive containing a malicious VBS executable file.

This file then injects Dridex banking malware into the system. This malicious program compromises device integrity and can lead to financial loss and serious privacy issues. If it is suspected or known that Dridex (or other malware) has already infected the system, use anti-virus software to eliminate it immediately.

Threat Summary:

Name	Chorus Union spam
Threat Type	Trojan, password-stealing virus, banking malware, spyware.
Hoax	Emails are disguised as "Chorus Union" payment invoice notifications.
Related Domains	edgewaterunitedmethodist[.]org, ppsspp[.]org
Detection Names (edgewaterunitedmethodist[.]org)	BitDefender (Malware), CLEAN MX (Malicious), CRDF (Malicious), Spamhaus (Spam), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal).
Detection Names (malicious archive)	McAfee (VBS/Dropper.cr), F-Secure (Worm:VBS/Njw0rm.B), NANO-Antivirus (Trojan.Script.Agent.gmbvfx), Sophos AV (Mal/DrodZp-A), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal).
Symptoms	Trojans are designed to stealthily infiltrate the victim's computer and remain silent, and thus no particular symptoms are clearly visible on an infected machine.
Payload	Dridex
Distribution methods	Infected email attachments, malicious online advertisements, social engineering, software 'cracks'.
Damage	Stolen passwords and banking information, identity theft, the victim's computer added to a botnet.
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.

Deceptive/Scam emails are distributed by the thousand during large scale operations termed "spam campaigns". "U.S. Small Business Administration", "Secret Love", "Adobe Document Cloud E-Signing" and "Your friend’s account was compromised" are some examples.

The messages are usually disguised as "official", "important", "urgent", "priority" or otherwise abuse the current social climate (e.g. the Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic). The emails might even be disguised as mail from existing institutions, organizations, companies, businesses, service providers and other legitimate entities.

Spam campaigns are not used solely for malware proliferation, they can also be employed for phishing purposes and other scams.

For example, the messages might ask recipients to provide personal information (e.g. names, addresses, telephone numbers, banking account or credit card details. etc.), rectify issues with specific accounts via fake log-in websites, make monetary transactions (e.g. pay ransoms, fake fees or fines), and so on.

Regardless of what these emails claim, request, or demand, their purpose is identical: to generate profit for the scammers/cyber criminals behind them.

How did "Chorus Union Email Virus" infect my computer?

Systems are infected through malicious files sent during scam campaigns. The dangerous content can be presented as download links or attached to the emails. Infectious files appear in a wide variety of formats such as Microsoft Office and PDF documents, archive (ZIP, RAR, etc.) and executable (.vbs, .exe, .run, etc.) files, JavaScript and others.

When these files are opened (e.g, executed, run, etc.), the infection process (malware download/installation) is triggered. For example, Microsoft Office documents infect systems by executing malicious macro commands. This process is started automatically in MS Office versions released prior to 2010.

The newer versions ask users to enable macro commands (i.e., to enable editing), and hence the infection is start only after macros are manually enabled.

How to avoid installation of malware

To avoid infecting your system through spam emails, you are advised against opening suspicious or irrelevant messages, especially those with any attachments or links present - doing so can trigger malware download/installation. Additional recommendations include using Microsoft Office versions released after 2010.

These versions have "Protected View" mode, which prevents infections being initiated when a malicious document is opened. Malware is also distributed via untrusted download channels (e.g. unofficial and free file-hosting sites, Peer-to-Peer sharing networks and other third party downloaders), illegal activation ("cracking") tools and fake updates.

Therefore, use official, verified download sources and activate and update programs with tools/functions provided by genuine developers. To ensure device and user safety, have a reputable anti-virus/anti-spyware suite installed and kept up to date. Use this software to run regular system scans and to remove detected threats and issues.

If you have already opened "Chorus Union Email Virus" attachment, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate infiltrated malware.

Text presented in the "Chorus Union Email Virus" email message:

Subject: Mobile Transaction 420531LA570659

 

Chorus Union
Invoice Due: 12-05-2020
332870

 

Amount Due: $696.00
Dear Customer:
Your invoice-332870 for 696.00 $ is attached. Please remit payment at your earliest convenience.

 

Thank you for your business - we appreciate it very much.
To manage click here.

 

Sincerely,
Chorus Union

 

unsubscribe privacy policy

VirusTotal detections of the archived file containing the malicious executable, which injects Dridex malware:

Screenshot of the decoy website (ppsspp[.]org) to which the link within the "Chorus Union" email redirects, if the user's IP address is of no interest:

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:
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Quick menu:

• What is Chorus Union spam?
• 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.

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