How to spot scams like "Webmail Security Team - Important Email Notice"

What is "Webmail Security Team - Important Email Notice"?

Our team has inspected the email and found that it is disguised as an important notification from the "Webmail Security Team". Its purpose is to trick recipients into opening the presented link and disclosing sensitive information on a fake website. This email should be ignored to avoid account hijacking and other issues.

More about the "Webmail Security Team - Important Email Notice" scam email

The email impersonates a webmail security team and claims that unusual activity has been detected on the recipient's account. It urges the recipient to confirm their session to maintain access and keep the account secure, presenting the request as a routine administrative verification.

The message warns that failing to act may result in temporary account restrictions and includes a button ("Confirm Session" link). Clicking this button leads to a fake login website crafted to extract email account login credentials (email addresses and passwords). This page can mimic the appearance of the recipient's email service provider (e.g., Gmail or Yahoo Mail).

If accessed by scammers, email accounts can be used to collect personal information from emails, send scams, and distribute malware. Also, fraudsters may attempt to access other accounts (e.g., social media, gaming, or banking) and use them for malicious purposes, such as identity theft or financial fraud.

Thus, it is important to be careful when receiving emails like this one to avoid falling for scams.

Similar scam emails in general

In conclusion, this email is a phishing scam designed to steal login credentials. Interacting with it can lead to account compromise, identity theft, or financial and security risks. Sometimes, deceptive emails are used to distribute malware. Users should avoid clicking such links and always verify security messages directly through their official email provider.

Examples of scam emails are "Problem With Email Account Due To Server Upgrade Email Scam", "IMAP/POP3 Configuration Error Email Scam", and "Wells Fargo - Suspicious Card Activity Detected Email Scam".

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Cybercriminals often spread malware through email by attaching infected files. These can be documents like Word, Excel, or PDF files, archives such as ZIP or RAR, executables, scripts, or ISO images. Opening these files or following instructions inside them can execute malware on the device.

Emails may also contain links to unsafe or compromised websites. Visiting these sites or interacting with them can result in malware being downloaded automatically or trick users into downloading it themselves. In both cases, the device cannot be infected unless the recipient clicks the link or opens the malicious file.

How to avoid installation of malware?

Always download programs from official websites or trusted app stores, and avoid using pirated software, cracks, or keygens. Keep your operating system and applications up to date, and run regular scans with reliable security software. Be careful with pop-ups, ads, buttons, or links on untrustworthy websites.

Treat unexpected emails or messages from unknown senders with caution, and only open attachments or click links if you are certain they are safe.

Text presented in the "Webmail Security Team - Important Email Notice" email letter:

Subject: "Please Confirm Your Information"

Webmail Security Team
Important Email Notice

Hi ******** , we've noticed activity on your account that requires your immediate attention. To ensure you continue to have uninterrupted access and your emails remain secure, please confirm your session by clicking the button below. This is a standard verification performed by the Webmail admin to keep your account fully protected.

Confirm Session

Ignoring this step may temporarily limit access to your account. Please take a moment to confirm your session now.

Regards,
Webmail Security Team
********

Fake site used in this scam:

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Quick menu:

• What is Webmail Security Team - Important Email Notice 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?

The messages are often sent to many recipients using email lists collected through data breaches or fraudulent websites. Simply put, in most cases they are not personal/targeted.

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

When account login details or other private data are leaked, it is important to change passwords without delay and inform the appropriate organizations if financial or identity information was affected.

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

Some file types, such as executables and scripts, can run malware as soon as they are opened. Documents are generally less risky unless users enable features like macros. The risk of infection varies depending on the file format.

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

Emails are only harmful when users interact with their contents, such as downloading attachments or following malicious links. Opening an email alone is safe.

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

Combo Cleaner is able to detect and eliminate the majority of malware, but advanced infections may only be found and eliminated through a full system scan.