What kind of malspam is "Social Security - Annual Earnings Statement"

What kind of email is "Social Security - Annual Earnings Statement"?

After inspecting this email, we determined it is malspam. The message impersonates the U.S. Social Security Administration, claiming the recipient has an Annual Earnings Statement ready for download. Its true purpose is to deliver malware through a link leading to a fraudulent website. This email should be ignored and deleted.

"Social Security - Annual Earnings Statement" email virus overview

The email poses as an official communication from the Social Security Administration (SSA) and informs the recipient that their Annual Earnings Statement is available. The message states the document can be used for tax filing, benefit applications, and personal records. The real SSA has no connection to this email campaign.

Clicking the "Download" link takes the victim to ssahelps.info, a fraudulent website designed to mimic an official SSA portal. The page displays what appears to be a document titled "Earnings_Statement_2026.pdf" and automatically triggers a file download.

The downloaded file is a ZIP archive named "August-eStatement.zip", not a PDF. Inside the archive is a malicious batch script (.bat file) disguised to appear as a legitimate PDF document.

Batch scripts are plain-text files that execute a series of Windows commands when run. These commands operate silently in the background, often with no visible sign that anything harmful is taking place.

The specific malware this script delivers is currently unknown; it could be a trojan, ransomware, spyware, a keylogger, or another form of malicious software.

Running the malicious file may lead to data theft, financial losses, or other serious harm. Anyone who has already executed the file should perform a full antivirus scan without delay.

Similar malspam examples

This email is a fraudulent message impersonating the Social Security Administration. It uses a fake earnings statement notice to direct victims to a malicious website that delivers a batch script inside a ZIP archive. Executing that file can result in a serious malware infection.

Formal Commercial Offer, Adobe - A Document For Review And Electronic Signature, and Intuit QuickBooks Payment Invoice are just a few examples of malware-spreading campaigns we have analyzed. Spam mail is routinely used to distribute all kinds of malicious software.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Malware is commonly spread through email by way of malicious attachments or deceptive links. Attachments can look like ordinary documents, archives, executables, or script files, yet contain hidden malicious code. Links in spam emails often direct victims to sites that auto-download harmful files or trick them into running a file manually.

Different file formats carry different risks. Archives such as ZIP files typically require the user to extract and run a file manually. Office documents may need the user to enable macro commands, while executables and batch scripts can trigger infection the moment they are opened.

How to avoid installation of malware?

Exercise caution with unexpected emails, particularly those urging you to download files or follow links. If an email claims to come from a government agency, verify through that agency's official website before taking any action. Do not open files from senders you do not recognize.

Keep your operating system and all installed software up to date. Download programs only from official websites and verified app stores. Avoid pirated software, key generators, and cracks, which are frequently used to spread malware.

Use a reputable antivirus program and keep it active at all times. If you have already opened a suspicious file, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically remove any installed malware.

Text presented in the "Social Security - Annual Earnings Statement" email letter:

Subject: Verify Your eStatement

Social Security Administration
Your Annual Earnings Statement

This is a certified summary of wages and self-employment income reported to Social Security for the period below. You may use it to verify

[Download]

Earnings for tax filing, benefit applications, and your personal records.

[Manage Subscriptions] | [Unsubscribe All] | [Help]

Screenshot of the malicious website promoted by this spam campaign:

Instant automatic malware removal:

Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced IT skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of malware. Download it by clicking the button below:

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Quick menu:

• What is Social Security - Annual Earnings Statement malspam?
• 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. Cybercriminals send the same message to large numbers of people at once, using addresses gathered through data breaches, purchased lists, or web-scraping operations.

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

If you entered account credentials on the linked website, change those passwords right away. For any financial or government-related information that was disclosed, contact the relevant institutions as soon as possible.

I have downloaded and opened a file promoted by a spam email, is my computer infected?

A batch script (.bat file) runs its commands immediately upon being opened. If you extracted and executed the file from the downloaded archive, your computer is very likely infected. Run a full antivirus scan without delay.

I have read the email but did not click on any links, is my computer infected?

No. Simply reading an email cannot cause infection. In this case, malware requires the user to click the download link, extract the archive, and run the file inside. If you took none of those steps, your computer should be safe.

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

Combo Cleaner can detect and remove most known malware infections. Since the malware in this campaign is not yet identified, running a complete system scan is especially important for locating any threats that may be lurking on the system.