What sort of email scam is "SSL Certificate Expiration"

What kind of email is "SSL Certificate Expiration"?

We have examined this email and determined it is a phishing scam. It impersonates a fake hosting provider called "Hosting.ssl," falsely claiming the recipient's SSL certificate is about to expire, and directs victims to a fraudulent login page to steal their email account credentials. This email should be ignored.

"SSL Certificate Expiration" email scam overview

The email arrives under the subject "Server error message." and is styled to look like a communication from "Hosting.ssl." It warns the recipient that their SSL certificate will expire in under 24 hours and that browsers will begin showing visitors an "Unsafe site" warning.

To pressure recipients into acting immediately, the message lists alarming consequences: losing customers, dropping in Google search rankings, and appearing as if the site has been hacked. A bold "Renew SSL Now" button is presented as the quick fix.

Despite the focus on certificate renewal, the email's real intent appears at the very bottom, where it states that "Hosting.ssl requires email passwords authentification." Clicking the button takes the victim to a fake Roundcube Webmail login page.

The phishing page is hosted on Firebase Storage, a legitimate cloud service operated by Google that scammers are abusing to make the link appear credible. The page pre-fills the victim's email address, making it look convincingly personalized, and asks for a password.

Any credentials entered are sent directly to the attackers. With a stolen email account, criminals can reset passwords on linked services, read private messages, and launch further scam campaigns. It is important to note that neither Roundcube nor Google has any connection to this scam.

Similar scam emails in general

In conclusion, the "SSL Certificate Expiration" email is a phishing scam disguised as an urgent hosting alert. Its goal is to steal email account credentials through a fake Roundcube Webmail login page. Recipients should disregard the message and avoid clicking any links it contains.

In some cases, scam emails like this are also used to deliver malware rather than direct recipients to phishing sites.

More examples of similar phishing email campaigns are Messages Are On Hold, Required System Upgrade, and Roundcube Security Patches.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Cybercriminals frequently deliver malware through email by attaching malicious files to their messages. These can include executables, Microsoft Office documents, PDF files, archives such as ZIP or RAR, and various script files. Opening them can set off a malware download and installation chain.

Spam emails may also contain links leading to malicious websites. Visiting these sites can trigger automatic downloads or prompt users to manually download harmful programs. In most cases, infection only occurs if the recipient interacts with the malicious content - simply receiving or reading the email poses no direct risk.

How to avoid installation of malware?

Exercise caution with unsolicited emails, particularly those that create urgency or ask you to click a link or open a file. If an email appears to come from a company you use, go directly to that company's official website to verify any claims rather than following links in the message.

Download software only from official websites and reputable app stores. Pirated programs, unofficial patches, and key generators are frequently used to distribute malware. Also keep your operating system and all installed applications up to date to reduce exposure to known vulnerabilities.

Use a trusted antivirus tool and keep it running in the background. If you have already interacted with a suspicious attachment, run a full system scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to identify and remove any threats that may have been installed.

Text presented in the "SSL Certificate Expiration" email letter:

Subject: ******** Server error message.

hosting .ssl
⚠ SSL expires in 24 hours

********/a client,

Your SSL certificate expires in less than 24 hours. Without renewal, browsers they will show "Unsafe site" to its visitors.

Affected domain

********

If you don't renew today: Lose clients, lose positions on Google and it seems hacked.

Only 3 steps
1. Update your payment method
2. We renew the SSL of automatic form
3. Your site recovers the green padlock
[Renew SSL Now→]

Less than 2 minutes • Renewal 100% safe

Automatic message — no reply to this email.
Hosting.ssl requires email passwords authentification.

© 2026 Hosting.ssl — The best Hosting

A fake Roundcube Webmail login page used in this scam:

Instant automatic malware removal:

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Quick menu:

• What is SSL Certificate Expiration phishing scam?
• 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?

These messages are not targeted. Scammers distribute them in large batches to address lists gathered through data breaches, fake websites, and similar sources. Receiving one does not mean you were specifically selected.

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

Change your email account password immediately, and update passwords for any other accounts where you reuse the same credentials. If you also entered banking or identification details, contact the relevant institutions without delay.

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

It depends on the file type. Executable files can compromise a system almost immediately upon being opened. Document formats such as PDFs or Word files typically require an additional action from the user, such as enabling macros, before any malicious code is activated.

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

No. Reading or viewing an email does not cause infection on its own. A device is only put at risk if the user clicks a link, opens an attachment, or otherwise engages with the malicious content inside the message.

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

Yes. Combo Cleaner is designed to detect and remove a wide range of malware threats. Running a complete system scan is recommended, as more advanced threats can sometimes conceal themselves deep within the system and may require a thorough scan to be found.