Avoid getting scammed by fake "Human Resources Report" emails

What kind of email is "Human Resources Report"?

After inspecting this "Human Resources Report" email, we determined that it is fake. This spam message claims that the recipient can now access the monthly report from their HR department. This campaign aims to deceive recipients into disclosing their email account log-in credentials to a phishing website.

"Human Resources Report" email scam overview

This spam email informs the recipient that the monthly report from their HR (Human Resources) department is available. This report includes employee performance reviews, leave and monthly activity summaries, and promotion list. It must be reiterated that this email is fraudulent and not associated with the recipients' HR departments or their employers.

The phishing site promoted by this campaign is presented as a Microsoft Excel document portal requesting verification with the intended recipient's email account log-in credentials. This kind of website operates by recording entered data and sending it to scammers.

By gaining access to emails, cyber criminals can cause a variety of severe issues. Work accounts are often targeted to attempt to infect the corporate network with trojans, ransomware, or other malware. Through a compromised email, scammers might be able to access connected accounts, platforms, and services (e.g., file sharing, cloud storage, social networking, messaging, e-commerce, money transferring, online banking, etc.).

To expand upon the potential abuse, scammers can steal the account owner's identity and ask for loans or donations from contacts/friends/followers, endorse scams, and proliferate malware by sharing malicious links or files. Compromised finance-related accounts can be used to make fraudulent transactions or online purchases.

In summary, victims of scam emails like "Human Resources Report" can experience system infections, serious privacy issues, financial losses, and identity theft.

If you have already disclosed your account credentials – change the passwords of all possibly exposed accounts and inform their official support without delay.

Phishing spam campaign examples

"Management Shared A File With You", "DHL Global - Shipment Tracking Number", "Request To Cancel Your Webmail Account", "Pretpark Tours", and "HSBC - Invoice Details" are merely some of our newest articles on phishing emails.

These messages primarily seek to obtain recipients' log-in credentials, personally identifiable information, and financial data. However, spam campaigns are used to promote various scams. Deceptive emails are also utilized in malware distribution.

Due to how prevalent this mail is and how well-made it can be – we strongly advise vigilance with incoming emails, DMs/PMs, SMSes, and other communications.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Malspam is a widely used malware proliferation technique. These spam emails/messages have infectious files attached to or linked inside them. Virulent files come in different formats, including documents (Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, PDF, etc.), archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), executables (EXE, RUN, etc.), JavaScript, and others.

The infection chain is jumpstarted once a malicious file is opened. Certain formats may need additional user interaction. For example, Microsoft Office documents require users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), and OneNote files need them to click on embedded links or files.

How to avoid installation of malware?

We recommend exercising caution with incoming emails and other messages. Attachments or links present in suspicious/irrelevant mail must not be opened, as they may be infectious.

It must be mentioned that malware is spread using various methods. Therefore, we also advise vigilance when browsing, as fake and malicious online content usually appears genuine and innocuous.

Additionally, all downloads must be made from official and trustworthy channels. Another recommendation is to activate and update programs using legitimate functions/tools, as illegal software activation tools ("cracks") and third-party updates can contain malware.

We must stress the importance of having a reputable antivirus installed and kept updated. Security programs must be used to run regular system scans and to remove detected 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 "Human Resources Report" spam email letter:

Subject: Monthly Human Resources Report – Performance & Leave Summary 12/9/2025 3:02:25 AM

Dear Team,

The Monthly Human Resources Report is now available. This report contains the full Employee Performance Review, Leave Summary, Monthly Activity Summary, and Promotion List for the period under review.

Please click the button below to access the complete report:

View Monthly HR Report

All performance updates, leave records, and summary insights are included within the report once opened.

For further inquiries, feel free to contact the HR Department.

Best Regards,
Director of Human Resources

Email: ********
Website: ********

Screenshot of the phishing website promoted by the "Human Resources Report" spam campaign:

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Quick menu:

• What is "Human Resources Report" 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 they include details relevant to the recipients. These messages are distributed in mass-scale campaigns – hence, thousands of users receive identical or incredibly similar messages.

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

If you have disclosed your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all potentially compromised accounts and inform their official support. And if you've provided other private information – contact the appropriate authorities without delay.

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

Reading an email poses no infection threat; 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 system was infected might depend on the opened file's format. Executables cause infections almost without fail (upon being opened). However, some formats need additional interaction to begin malware infiltration processes. For example, documents may require users to enable macros, click embedded content, or perform other actions.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Combo Cleaner is designed to scan computers and remove all kinds of threats. It is capable of detecting and eliminating most of the known malware infections. Remember that performing a complete system scan is paramount since high-end malicious programs typically hide deep within systems.