The email message below with the subject: "Update to 2017 Outlook," which claims the recipients need to update their accounts to prevent some of their incoming and old messages from getting deleted automatically, is a phishing scam sent by cybercriminals, and not by Microsoft. The fake email message was created by cybercriminals to frighten and trick the recipients into clicking on the link within it. The link goes to a phishing website or a fake website looking like Microsoft’s website, created by cybercriminals to trick potential victims into entering their Microsoft account usernames and passwords on it, by asking them to sign in. But, any attempts to sign into the fake website, will result in the victims’ Microsoft account usernames and passwords being sent to cybercriminals.
Once cybercriminals have gotten their potential victims’ account credentials (usernames and passwords), they will use it to hijack their Microsoft accounts and use them fraudulently. Therefore, recipients of the phishing email message (see below) who were tricked into clicking on the link within it and have attempted to sign into the phishing or fake website that they were taken, are asked to change their Microsoft account passwords immediately, before they are hijacked and used fraudulently by cybercriminals.
The "Update to 2017 Outlook - Microsoft Security info" Phishing Scam
From: Microsotf Account Team ptsteelfab@hotmail.com
Date: 10/01/2017 23:55 (GMT+07:00)
To: noreply@hotmail.com
Subject: Update to 2017 Outlook
Microsoft Security info
Your Microsoft Account needs to be updated, and this will cause some of your incoming and old messages to get deleted automatically.
If you are still an active user please Verify Your User Email to continue usage.
This is to protect your account from spam, click the button below.
Update your account
Note: Please do the ignore the this Email Not to Avoid Blocking of messages, failure to do SO Within 48hrs your Account Suspended Till Verified Will BE ..
Thanks.
The Microsoft account team.
2017 the Microsoft . Support. All Rights Reserved ..
Microsoft users should never click on a link to sign into their accounts, they should instead, go directly to https://account.microsoft.com/ and sign-in from there. If there is something that needs to be done to their accounts, they will be notified. This is will prevent Microsoft users from visiting phishing websites disguised as legitimate Microsoft website that steals account credentials.