How to identify fake emails like "Email Account Status Changed"

What is "Email Account Status Changed" scam?

We have analyzed the email and concluded that it is a phishing message masquerading as a notification from the email service provider. It is designed to trick recipients into opening a fake website and revealing personal information. Victims of this scam can have their accounts hijacked and encounter other issues.

More about the "Email Account Status Changed" scam email

This scam email claims to be from an email service provider and informs the recipient that their account status has changed. It states that the account requires revalidation to ensure continued access and urges the user to click the included "Reactivate" button (link). This button is designed to open a fake website.

The opened site can mimic the appearance of the recipient's email service provider. It can appear as Gmail, Yahoo Mail, or another site, depending on the recipient's email address. The purpose of this phishing page is to trick visitors into believing that they have to enter their email account login credentials to "reactivate" their accounts.

Any information entered on this page is sent to scammers. If stolen, email account login credentials can be used to hijack email accounts and misuse them to send scam emails, distribute malicious software, collect information found in emails, and more. Also, scammers may try to access social media, banking, or other accounts using the pilfered details.

Overall, victims of this scam may experience financial loss, identity theft, damage to their reputation, and other adverse consequences.

Conclusion

This scam email is a phishing attempt designed to steal email login credentials. Victims may face financial loss, identity theft, and other serious consequences. Sometimes, emails of this kind can be used to trick recipients into infecting their computers with malware. It is important to know how to identify scams to avoid falling for them.

Examples of similar scams are "Complete The Authentication Process Email Scam", "Mailbox Verification Notice Email Scam", and "Microsoft OneDrive - Files Shared With You Email Scam".

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Attackers often send emails with infected attachments, such as Word, Excel, PDF files, ZIP or RAR archives, scripts, or executable files. Opening these files, enabling macros, or activating malware in other ways infects a device. Emails can also include links to fake or compromised websites.

Visiting these sites may automatically download malware or convince the user to download and execute it. Generally, infections can occur when users click on malicious links or open harmful attachments in deceptive emails.

How to avoid installation of malware?

Be careful with emails and messages, particularly if they are unexpected or from unknown senders, and avoid opening attachments or clicking links in them. Do not use pirated software, key generators, or cracking tools. When browsing online, ignore pop-ups, ads, buttons, and links on untrustworthy websites.

Only download software and files from official sources or reputable app stores, keep your operating system and programs up to date, and regularly scan your system with reliable security software to protect your device.

Text presented in the "Email Account Status Changed" email letter:

Subject: Please confirm to continue.

Mail. Host. Online

Email account status changed

We are reaching out to inform you that your webmail account ******** requires revalidation to ensure continued access to your account

Reactivate

You have received this email because you are registered, to ensure the implementation of our Service and for other legitimate matters.

Privacy Policy

© 2025.

Phishing website used in this scam:

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Quick menu:

• What is Email Account Status Changed phishing attempt?
• 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?

Such emails target many addresses at once, often obtained from compromised or fake sites, and therefore rarely include personal details.

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

Change the passwords for all accounts that could be compromised. Inform the relevant entities if any sensitive information, such as financial or personal identification data, has been exposed.

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

The likelihood of getting malware depends on the type of file. For instance, executable files (.exe) can trigger infections upon being opened, whereas documents generally pose a threat only if macros are activated.

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

Simply opening an email does not infect a device. The possibility of an infection occurs only when a malicious attachment is opened or a harmful link is clicked.

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

Using Combo Cleaner to run a scan can remove most malware, and a full system scan helps detect and eliminate hidden or more sophisticated threats.