How to identify fake "Marathon Petroleum Corp" emails

What kind of email is "Marathon Petroleum Corp"?

Our inspection of this "Marathon Petroleum Corp" email revealed that it is spam. It is presented as an invitation to serve as a vendor or supplier for Marathon Petroleum.

It must be emphasized that the information in this email is false, and this mail is not associated with the actual Marathon Petroleum Corporation. The likely purpose of this spam campaign is to obtain private information and/or funds from the recipients.

"Marathon Petroleum Corp" email scam overview

The spam email with the subject "Vendor Supply Project Invitation" (may vary) invites the recipient's company to work with Marathon Petroleum. Interested suppliers, vendors, and companies can request EOI (Expression Of Interest, also known as ITT – Invitation To Tender) and Vendor's Questionnaire forms.

As mentioned in the introduction, this email is in no way associated with the Marathon Petroleum Corporation or any other legitimate entities.

How exactly this scam operates is unknown. Typically, spam mail of this kind aims to collect sensitive information or trick victims into sending scammers money. The forms that interested parties are to fill out can ask for vulnerable company data, which cyber criminals could use for a variety of nefarious purposes.

Likewise, victims could be sent phishing files or links to such websites that seek to record log-in credentials of various accounts (e.g., emails, management platforms, social networking, e-commerce, online banking, digital wallets, etc.) or other private data. Victims may be lured into parting with their funds by being presented with legitimate-sounding reasons like paying taxes or fees.

Another goal of the scammers could be to infect the victims' company networks with trojans, ransomware, or other malware. Criminals can send infectious files that may be competently disguised as relevant documentation.

It is noteworthy that scammers may communicate with victims for an extensive amount of time and even form a rapport – thus crafting an incredibly convincing scam.

To summarize, by trusting an email like "Marathon Petroleum Corp" – users can experience system infections, severe privacy issues, financial losses, and identity theft.

If you have disclosed personally identifiable or finance-related information (e.g., ID card details, passport scans, credit card numbers, etc.) – immediately contact the appropriate authorities. And if you've provided your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all possibly compromised accounts and inform their official support.

If you suspect that your network has been infected – perform a complete system scan with an antivirus and eliminate all threats without delay.

Spam campaigns in general

Spam campaigns are used to promote various scams, including phishing, technical support, refund, advance fee, sextortion, etc. This mail is also utilized in malware distribution.

"Leave Request Form", "Human Resource Internal Memo", "OneDrive - You Have A New Document", "Coinbase Transition To Self-Custodial Wallets", "We Have Your Search Requests And Webcam Footage", "Next Holidays", "Overdraft Payment", "Order Placement", "Payment Has Been Remitted Into Your Account", and "2025 World Sustainable Development Summit Invitation" are just some of our latest articles on spam emails.

While the widely held belief that these messages are poorly written and riddled with spelling/grammatical mistakes is not untrue, it is not always the case. This mail can be competently crafted and even believably disguised as messages from legitimate entities (e.g., corporations, companies, organizations, service providers, authorities, etc.).

Therefore, we recommend exercising caution with incoming emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, and other messages.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Malware is commonly proliferated via spam campaigns. These emails/messages include virulent files as attachments or download links. Infectious files come in various formats, e.g., documents (Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, PDF, etc.), archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), executables (EXE, RUN, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.

Merely opening such a file can be enough to trigger the malware infiltration chain. However, some formats require additional user interaction to initiate the system infection process. For example, Microsoft Office files need users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), while OneNote documents require them to click embedded links or files.

How to avoid installation of malware?

We strongly advise vigilance with incoming emails and other messages. Attachments or links present in suspicious/irrelevant communications must not be opened, as they can be harmful or infectious.

However, malware is not spread exclusively via spam mail. Therefore, we recommend being careful while browsing since fraudulent and dangerous online content usually appears legitimate and harmless.

Additionally, all downloads must be made from official and verified sources. Another recommendation is to activate and update software using functions/tools provided by genuine developers, as illegal product activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updaters can contain malware.

It is paramount for device integrity and user safety to have a reputable antivirus installed and kept updated. Security software must be used to perform regular system scans and 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 "Marathon Petroleum Corp" spam email letter:

Subject: Vendor Supply Project Invitation

Dear Valued Supplier,

We are extending an invitation to your valued company to register as potential suppliers, vendors, and partners for the MARATHON PETROLEUM CORP 2025–2026 projects.

All individual entrepreneurs, Suppliers, Vendors, and companies from across the world are open to this project; if you're interested in participating, kindly request the EOI and Vendor's Questionnaire forms.

Feel free to contact us via this email address: Harris.Roger@marathonpetroleumcorps.com

We appreciate your interest in this invitation and look forward to receiving your prompt response.

Kind Regards,

Harris G. Roger
Harris.Roger@marathonpetroleumcorps.com
Vendor Coordinator Group Procurement & Contracts - Strategy & Growth Management Dept.
MARATHON PETROLEUM CORP
539 South Main Street Findlay, OH 45840 USA
hxxps://www.marathonpetroleum.com

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Quick menu:

• What is "Marathon Petroleum Corp" spam 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, even if they include personal information or other relevant details. These messages are sent out in large-scale campaigns – 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 – immediately change the passwords of all potentially exposed accounts and inform their official support. However, if you've disclosed other private information (e.g., ID card details, passport scans/photos, credit/debit 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, reading an email will not trigger any malware download/installation processes. Systems 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 the device was infected might depend on the format of the opened file. If it was an executable – most likely, yes – the system was infected. However, you might have avoided this if it was a document. These formats may require additional interaction (e.g., enabling macros, clicking embedded content, etc.) to begin malware infiltration processes.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner can detect and remove most of the known malware infections. Note that running a full system scan is essential since sophisticated malicious programs tend to hide deep within systems.