How to recognize fake emails like "Request To Delete Your Email"

What kind of email is "Request To Delete Your Email"?

Our examination of the "Request To Delete Your Email" letter revealed that it is spam. This email makes false claims regarding a request to terminate the recipient's mail account. The goal is to trick them into attempting to prevent the "deletion" by accessing a website promoted by the spam email, which operates as a phishing site and targets account log-in credentials.

"Request To Delete Your Email" scam overview

The scam email with the subject "Web Server Cancellation Request Received" (may vary) informs that a request to delete the email account has been received.

If the recipient recognizes this request as one made by them, they are not to take any action – and the account will be terminated within 48 hours. However, if the recipient did not submit the request – they are to click "Cancel Request" immediately.

The email is signed off with "Microsoft Corporation" – which is an attempt to create the impression of legitimacy. As previously mentioned, this letter is fake and must be ignored. It is in no way associated with any legitimate entities.

When we followed the link promoted by this email, we were redirected to a phishing website disguised as an email account sign-in page. Log-in credentials (i.e., email address and corresponding password) entered into this webpage will be disclosed to scammers.

In addition to stealing the exposed email account, cyber criminals may also gain access to the content registered through it. To expand upon this, scammers can steal the identities of social account owners (e.g., emails, social networking, social media, etc.) and ask the contacts/friends for loans or donations, promote scams, and proliferate malware by sharing malicious links/files.

Hijacked finance-related accounts (e.g., online banking, money transferring, digital wallets, etc.) can be used to perform unauthorized transactions and make online purchases.

In summary, by trusting an email like "Request To Delete Your Email" – users may experience system infections, severe privacy issues, financial losses, and identity theft.

If you have already disclosed your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all possibly compromised accounts and inform their official support without delay.

Threat Summary:

Name	"Request To Delete Your Email" phishing email
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Request to delete the email account has been received.
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. ▼ 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.

Phishing spam campaign examples

"IMAP/POP Configuration Error", "You Have New 5 Held Messages", and "Ledger Wallet Has Been Suspended Due To Suspicious Activity" are just a couple examples of phishing emails we have investigated recently.

Various scams are promoted through spam mail, including (but not limited to): account credential phishing, personally identifiable information phishing, sextortion, fake tech support, and so on. Furthermore, deceptive emails are used to distribute trojans, ransomware, cryptocurrency miners, and other malware.

Due to how widespread spam mail is – we highly recommend exercising caution with incoming emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, and other messages.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Spam emails can contain infectious files as attachments or download links. These files can be documents (e.g., PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), executables (e.g., .exe, .run, etc.), archives (e.g., ZIP, RAR, etc.), JavaScript, and so forth.

When a virulent file is executed, run, or otherwise opened – the malware download/installation process is initiated. For example, Microsoft Office documents infect devices by executing malicious macro commands, while infectious OneNote files need users to click on embedded files/links.

How to avoid installation of malware?

We strongly advise caution with incoming emails and other messages. Attachments or links found in suspicious/irrelevant mail must not be opened, as they can be malicious and cause infections. It is crucial to use post-2010 Microsoft Office versions since they have the "Protected View" mode that prevents automatic macro execution.

It must be mentioned that malware is not proliferated exclusively via spam mail. Therefore, we recommend being vigilant while browsing since fake and dangerous online content usually appears ordinary and innocuous.

Additionally, all downloads must be performed from official and trustworthy sources. Another recommendation is to activate and update programs by using legitimate functions/tools, as illegal activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updaters may contain malware.

It is essential to have a dependable anti-virus installed and kept up-to-date. Security software must be used to run 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 "Request To Delete Your Email" letter:

Subject: Web Server Cancellation Request Received

Dear ********,

We have received a request to delete your email ********  account from our Web Server. If you made this request, Please ignore this message, your email account will be deleted in 48hours.

But if this request was not from you, click on the    Cancel Request    button below to cancel this request immediately.

Cancel Request

******** team

Source:     ******** Network
Microsoft Corporation, One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA,  98052
Copyright 2023

Screenshot of the phishing website promoted by the "Request To Delete Your Email" spam campaign:

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Quick menu:

• What is "Request To Delete Your Email" 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?

Cyber criminals distribute spam emails by the thousand with the hopes that at least some recipients will fall for their scams. Hence, this mail is not personal.

I have provided my personal information when tricked by this spam email, what should I do?

If you have provided your account credentials – immediately change the passwords of all potentially exposed accounts and inform their official support. And if you've disclosed other private data (e.g., ID card details, credit card numbers, etc.) – contact the appropriate authorities without delay.

I have read a spam email but didn't open the attachment, is my computer infected?

No, just opening/reading an email will not result in a system infection. Malware download/installation processes are triggered 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 opened file's format. If it was an executable (.exe, .run, etc.) – most likely, yes – the system was compromised. However, document formats (.doc, .xls, .one, .pdf, etc.) may require additional actions (e.g., enabling macro commands, clicking on embedded content, etc.) to begin downloading/installing malware.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner is capable of detecting and eliminating most of the known malware infections. It must be mentioned that running a complete system scan is essential – since high-end malicious programs typically hide deep within systems.

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