How to spot scams like "Outstanding Funds Due For Immediate Payment"

What kind of scam is "Outstanding Funds Due For Immediate Payment"?

Our inspection of the email has shown that it is a deceptive letter claiming that the recipient has been approved to receive a large sum of money. As a rule, scams like this one are created to deceive recipients into providing personal information or paying money to scammers. This and similar emails should be ignored.

More about the "Outstanding Funds Due For Immediate Payment" scam email

This scam email claims to be from Dr. Steven Strickland, Director of Finance at the International Monetary Fund. It states that the recipient has been identified as the next person approved to receive $15 million USD. The message instructs the recipient to confirm personal details, including name, address, nationality, occupation, contact numbers, gender, and age.

It states that these details should be confirmed so that the funds can be released through a U.S. bank. The email also mentions that the payment is part of an official program and warns against contacting any other institution about the matter. None of the claims in this email are true or legitimate, and this email is likely an advance-fee scam.

Typically, scammers behind such scams aim to collect personal information and trick recipients into paying fake fees for nonexistent funds. Either way, such emails should be ignored to avoid monetary loss, identity theft, or other issues.

Similar scam emails in general

Scams like this usually promise large sums of money to lure victims into providing personal information or paying upfront fees. They often impersonate organizations or other entities to appear legitimate. Ultimately, no payment is made, and victims lose money or risk identity theft.

Sometimes, fraudulent emails can be used to distribute malware. Here are some examples of scams similar to the one we reviewed: "GreenWave Empowerment Fund", "Urgent Investment Arrangement", and "Humanitarian Aid And Compensation".

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Cybercriminals can trick users into infecting their devices by hiding malware in email attachments or through deceptive links. Common attachment types include documents (such as MS Office or PDFs), compressed files (ZIP or RAR), and script or executable files. Opening these files or taking additional steps like enabling macros in malicious documents can execute malware on computers.

In some cases, the emails direct recipients to fake or compromised websites that either prompt users to download harmful software or automatically install malware without any user action.

How to avoid installation of malware?

Ensure that your operating system and software are updated regularly. Only download apps and files from official websites or trusted app stores. Exercise caution with emails and messages - avoid opening attachments or clicking links if they seem unexpected, irrelevant, or come from unknown addresses or other sources.

Never download and use pirated software, cracking tools, and keygens. Be wary of ads and pop-ups on untrustworthy websites. Additionally, do not grant notification permissions to suspicious sites, and use dependable antivirus or security software 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 "Outstanding Funds Due For Immediate Payment" email letter:

Subject: VERIFICATION AND APPROVAL OF YOUR PAYMENT FILE

INTERNATIONAL FUNDS TRANSFER / AUDIT
UNIT UNITED NATION(WORLD BANK ASSISTED PROGRAMME)
DIRECTORATE OF INTERNATIONAL PAYMENT
AND TRANSFERS.Ref: WB/NF/UN/XX027
DEBT SETTLEMENT PANEL

ATTN: BENEFICIARY: ,

RE: VERIFICATION AND APPROVAL OF YOUR PAYMENT FILE.

FROM THE RECORDS OF OUTSTANDING FUNDS DUE FOR IMMEDIATE PAYMENT, YOUR NAME/PARTICULARS WAS DISCOVERED AS NEXT ON THE APPROVED LIST.
I WISH TO INFORM YOU THAT YOUR PAYMENT IS BEING PROCESSED AND FROM THE RECORD IN MY FILE, THE TOTAL SUM OF US $15 MILLION USD HAVE BEEN APPROVED ON YOUR BEHALF FOR THIS 2025 FISCAL YEAR

FOR YOUR INFORMATION, WE HAVE ASSIGNED THE US-BANK,TO HANDLE ALL RELATED TRANSACTIONS TO AVOID FURTHER COMPLAIN FROM BENEFICIARIES ABOUT INCESSANT TAXES, FEES AND LEVIES.

KINDLY RE-CONFIRM THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION IMMEDIATELY TO FACILITATE THE ISSUANCE OF AN INTERNATIONAL PAYMENT JUSTIFICATION ORDER DOCUMENT ON YOUR BEHALF WHICH WILL BE SUBMITTED TO THE US-BANK FOR THE IMMEDIATE RELEASE OF YOUR FUNDS.
1) YOUR FULL NAME:
2) CONTACT ADDRESS:
3) NATIONALITY:
4) OCCUPATION:
5) PHONE, FAX AND MOBILE:
6) GENDER:
7) AGE:
AS SOON AS THIS INFORMATION IS RECEIVED, YOUR PAYMENT WILL BE MADE TO YOUR NOMINATED BANK ACCOUNT DIRECTLY FROM THE US-BANK.

YOUR PAYMENT APPROVAL IS MADE UNDER THE AUSPICES OF THE WORLD BANK AND WE INTEND TO SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETE YOUR FUNDS TRANSFER. YOU ARE THEREFORE STRONGLY ADVISE TO STOP FURTHER COMMUNICATION WITH ANY OTHER BANK OR INSTITUTION REGARDING THIS MATTER, FOR THE OVERALL SAFETY OF YOU AND YOUR FUND.

Best Regards.

DR. STEVEN STRICKLAND
DIRECTOR OF FINANCE,
INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND.
U.N.O Representative

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Quick menu:

• What is Outstanding Funds Due For Immediate Payment advance-fee scam?
• 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?

Receiving a scam email often means your address was collected from a data leak, hacked (or fake) website, or similar source. These messages are typically not aimed at specific individuals and are generic.

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

If any login credentials were provided, promptly reset all compromised passwords. For other sensitive information like credit card or identification details, notify the proper authorities without delay.

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

Opening a malicious executable file (e.g., .exe) can instantly infect your device. While PDFs and Office documents and other files are usually safer, enabling macros or performing other actions after opening them can also lead to malware infiltration.

I have sent cryptocurrency to the address presented in such email, can I get my money back?

Cryptocurrency transactions are typically irreversible, making it highly unlikely to recover lost funds.

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

Simply reading an email without clicking links or opening attachments cannot infect your computer.

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

Combo Cleaner detects and removes most known malware, but since some threats can be deeply hidden, performing a full system scan is crucial to ensure removal and protection.