How to recognize fake "Suspicious Activity Detected" emails

What kind of email is "Suspicious Activity Detected"?

"Suspicious Activity Detected" refers to several email spam campaigns that urge recipients to take immediate action due to suspect account activity. This spam mail aims to deceive recipients into revealing their email account log-in credentials to phishing websites.

"Suspicious Activity Detected" email scam overview

We discovered two email versions of "Suspicious Activity Detected", and they had the following subjects: "Attention Security Notification : Unauthorized Access Attempt !!! [recipient's_email_address] Ref: -4611379)" and "[recipient's_email_address] Suspension Notification" (subjects may vary).

The former variant (screenshot above) is more extensive. It claims that unusual activity has been detected in the mailbox, namely, suspected unauthorized sign-in attempts. The recipient is urged to verify the activity and secure the email account.

The latter version (screenshot below) warns of suspicious mailbox activity due to which the account was scheduled for suspension. The recipient can avoid having their email account deleted by verifying it.

It must be stressed that the information in these messages is false, and this mail is not associated with any legitimate service providers. The promoted phishing sites impersonate the sign-in pages of the recipients' emails. Webpages of this kind record entered data (like log-in credentials) and send it to scammers.

Emails tend to contain incredibly sensitive information and may open an avenue for stealing linked accounts, platforms, and services (e.g., social networking, social media, messengers, e-commerce, money transferring, online banking, digital wallets, etc.).

Scammers can steal the account owner's identity and request loans or donations from contacts/friends/followers, promote scams, and proliferate malware by sharing malicious links or files. Hijacked finance-related accounts can be used to make fraudulent transactions or online purchases.

To summarize, victims of scam mail like "Suspicious Activity Detected" can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and identity theft.

If you have already disclosed your log-in credentials to a phishing website (or file) – change the passwords of all possibly exposed accounts and contact their official support without delay.

Phishing spam campaign examples

We have analyzed countless spam campaigns; "Invoice Payment Confirmation", "Gov.uk - Sponsor Licence Compliance Obligations", "Maersk - Shipping Documents And Arrival Notice", and "Renew Your Email Account" are merely a few of our newest articles on phishing emails.

Commonly targeted data includes log-in credentials, personally identifiable details, and finance-related information. It must be mentioned that various scams are promoted through spam mail, and it is used to distribute all kinds of malware.

The widely held belief that these emails are poorly written and riddled with grammatical/spelling mistakes is not untrue, but it is not always the case. This mail can be believably put together and disguised as content associated with genuine entities. Therefore, we strongly advise vigilance with incoming emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, and other messages.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Spam campaigns spread malware through virulent files that can be attached to or linked inside the emails/messages. These files can be executables (.exe, .run, etc.), archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), documents (Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, PDF, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.

Once such a file is opened – the infection chain is triggered. However, some formats need additional interaction to initiate malware infiltration processes. For example, Microsoft Office files require users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), while OneNote documents need them to click on 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 suspicious communications, as they can be harmful or infectious.

However, it must be mentioned that malware is proliferated using various methods. Therefore, we advise vigilance when browsing since the Internet is full of deceptive and dangerous content.

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

It is essential to have a reputable antivirus installed and kept updated. Security programs must be used to run regular system scans and to remove detected threats. 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 "Suspicious Activity Detected" spam email letter:

Subject: Attention Security Notification : Unauthorized Access Attempt !!! ******** Ref: -4611379)

Urgent: Suspicious Activity Detected on Your Account

Dear ********,

We have detected unusual activity on your mailbox associated with the address ********. It appears that unauthorized attempts have been made to access your account from an unknown location.

To protect your account and prevent further unauthorized access, we need you to verify your recent login activity and take action immediately.

Verify Your Activity Now

Why is this urgent?
Unauthorized access can put your sensitive information at risk. We strongly recommend that you review your account activity and change your password to secure your account.

If you did not attempt to log in from a new device or location, please take action now.

Thank you for trusting our security team,
The Mailbox Support Team

If you have any questions or need further assistance, please don't hesitate to contact us.

Screenshot of a phishing site promoted by a variant of the "Suspicious Activity Detected" spam email:

Screenshot of another variant of the "Suspicious Activity Detected" spam email:

Text presented in this variant:

Subject: ******** Suspension Notification

Suspicious Activity Detected

Suspicious activity on your email ******** has triggered a security alert. As a result, your account is scheduled for suspension.

To avoid account deletion, please verify your account immediately.

Verify Account

This is a system automated notification. Take the required action to prevent loss or deactivation of your account ********.

Screenshot of a phishing site promoted by this variant:

Instant automatic malware removal:

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Quick menu:

• What is "Suspicious Activity Detected" 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?

Spam emails are not personal, even if these messages include information relevant to the recipients. Spam mail is sent out in large-scale campaigns – hence, 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. However, if you have disclosed other private information (e.g., ID card details, credit card numbers, etc.) – immediately contact the appropriate authorities.

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

Reading an email does not pose an infection threat. Systems are compromised 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. Executables cause infections almost without fail (upon being opened). However, some formats – like documents – might need additional interaction (e.g., enabling macros, clicking embedded content, etc.) to begin downloading/installing malware.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Combo Cleaner can scan computers and eliminate all kinds of threats. It can detect and remove most of the known malware infections. Remember that performing a full system scan is paramount since high-end malicious programs typically hide deep within systems.