How to identify fake "International Philanthropy Program" emails

What kind of email is "International Philanthropy Program"?

After reading this "International Philanthropy Program" email, we determined that it is spam. This message claims that the recipient has been selected to receive a two-million GBP (pound sterling) grant.

It must be stressed that the information in the email is false, and this mail is not associated with any legitimate entities. Typically, spam campaigns of this kind target sensitive information and/or funds directly.

"International Philanthropy Program" email scam overview

The spam email with the subject "2025 International Philanthropy Program" (may vary) informs the recipient that they have been selected for a charitable grant. This philanthropic activity is part of the 2025 International Philanthropy Program facilitated by the Lee Shau Kee Foundation. These funds are intended to establish educational, innovative, and humanitarian initiatives supporting individuals and communities.

The recipient has been selected to be awarded a £2,000,000 charitable grant. The message instructs the recipient to contact the "Grant Administration Team" to initiate the verification and claims processes.

It must be emphasized that all the information in this email is false, and this mail is not associated with the foundation of Lee Shau-kee or any other genuine organizations and entities.

This type of spam campaign commonly seeks to obtain vulnerable information, such as log-in credentials (e.g., emails, social networking, money transferring, online banking, digital wallets, etc.), personally identifiable details (e.g., ID card info, passport scans/photos, etc.), and finance-related data (e.g., banking account details, credit/debit card numbers, etc.).

Victims can be deceived into disclosing this information directly to scammers or into providing it to phishing websites/files. Stolen online accounts can be used to ask for money from the owner's contacts/friends/followers, promote scams, and spread malware by sharing malicious links/files.

Hijacked finance-related accounts and financial information may be used to make fraudulent transactions or online purchases. Alternatively, victims may be asked directly to pay the scammers for legitimate-sounding reasons like handling taxes or transaction fees.

In summary, by trusting an email like "International Philanthropy Program" – users may experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and identity theft.

If you have already provided your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all potentially compromised accounts and inform their official support. However, if you've disclosed personally identifiable or financial data – immediately contact the appropriate authorities.

Spam campaigns in general

Spam campaigns are used to promote various scams, including phishing, advance fee, technical support, sextortion, refund, and so on. Deceptive messages are also used to spread all kinds of malware (e.g., trojans, ransomware, cryptominers, etc.).

"Messages Awaiting Your Attention", "Rainbow Lottery", "Message Quarantine Notification", "Request For Prices & Availability", "Email Address Verification Formal Notice", "Nedbank - New Debit Order Notification", "Mailbox Error Detected", "Coinbase Device Registration", "Compensation Entitlement", and "Annual Financial Review Status" are merely some of our latest articles on spam campaigns.

While the widely held belief that these emails are poorly written and riddled with grammatical/spelling mistakes is not untrue, it is not always the case. This mail can be competently put together and even believably disguised as messages from legitimate organizations, institutions, companies, service providers, authorities, and other entities. Therefore, we strongly recommend being careful with incoming emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, and other messages.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Spam campaigns proliferate malware by distributing virulent files as attachments or download links. These files come in different formats, e.g., archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), executables (EXE, RUN, etc.), documents (PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.

Malware download/installation is triggered once such a file is opened. However, some formats require additional actions to initiate infection processes. 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?

Incoming emails and other messages must be approached with caution. We advise against opening attachments or links found in dubious/irrelevant mail, as they can be harmful or infectious.

However, malware is distributed using various methods. Therefore, we recommend vigilance when browsing since fraudulent and dangerous online content usually appears genuine and harmless.

Another recommendation is to download only from official and verified sources. Software must be activated and updated using functions/tools provided by legitimate developers, as illegal activation tools ("cracks") and third-party updates can contain malware.

We must stress the importance of having a reputable antivirus installed and kept up-to-date. Security programs must be used to perform 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 "International Philanthropy Program" spam email letter:

Subject: 2025 International Philanthropy Program

Dear Beneficiary,

We are pleased to inform you that, as part of our 2025 International Philanthropy Program, the Lee Shau Kee Foundation has selected your contact from our global outreach database to receive a charitable grant.

This award, valued at GBP 2,000,000.00 (Two Million British Pounds), is part of our ongoing commitment to supporting individuals and communities through education, innovation, and humanitarian initiatives.

To begin the verification and claim process, please respond to this message, and our Grant Administration Team will provide you with the necessary documentation and instructions.

We appreciate your attention to this notification and look forward to your reply.

Kind regards,
Grant Administration Office
Lee Shau Kee Foundation

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Quick menu:

• What is "International Philanthropy Program" 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?

Regardless of any relevant information that spam emails may include, these messages are not personal. Criminals distribute this mail in massive 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 – change the passwords of all possibly exposed accounts and inform their official support without delay. However, if you have disclosed information of a different personal nature (e.g., ID card details, passport photos/scans, credit card numbers, etc.) – immediately contact relevant authorities.

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

No, reading any email is harmless. 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?

If the opened file was an executable (.exe, .run, etc.) – most likely, yes – the device was infected. However, you might have avoided this if it was a document (.doc, .xls, .pdf, etc.). These formats may need extra interaction (e.g., enabling macros, clicking embedded content, etc.) to jumpstart malware infiltration processes.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner can detect and eliminate almost all known malware infections. Remember that performing a complete system scan is paramount since sophisticated malicious programs typically hide deep within systems.