The email message below with the subject: "Update Your Account to Avoid Being Shut Down," which claims that a request was made to shutdown the recipients' accounts, is a phishing scam created to steal Microsoft Outlook or Hotmail user names and passwords. The email message was not sent by Microsoft, but by cyber-criminals, whose intentions are to hijack email accounts and use them for malicious purposes. So, recipients of the same email message are advised to delete it, and not follow the instructions in it.
The Phishing Microsoft Outlook Email Message
From: Outlook Team [mailto:alexkioussi @hotmail.com]
Sent: Friday, December 9, 2016 2:36 PM
Subject: Update your account to avoid being shut down
Dear User
We received your request to shutdown your account
We will process your request within 24 hours.
To retain your account, kindly Cancel Request to continue using our services.
CANCEL REQUEST & RECTIFY THIS PROBLEM
C 2016 Inc. All Rights Reserved.
The link in the email message goes to a fake Outlook or Microsoft website, which will attempt to trick the cyber-criminals' potential victims into entering their usernames and passwords on it. If the potential victims enter their Microsoft Outlook, Hotmail, Live usernames and passwords on the fake website, it will be sent to the cyber-criminals behind the email scam, who will use the information to hijack their accounts.
If you have received the same email message, please go directly to your email account instead of clicking on the links in the email message. And, if there is anything wrong with your account, it will be shown to you after signing into account. If you were tricked by the phishing email, please change your Microsoft Hotmail/Live/Outlook immediately. If you are unable to, click here to report it to Microsoft.
This scam is similar to the following: