The email message below, which claims a request to terminate the recipients' Microsoft accounts is a phishing scam sent by cybercriminals, and not by Microsoft. The phishing or fake email message has been created and sent 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. Therefore, Microsoft account users who receive the same email messages are asked to delete them and should not follow the instructions in them.
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 "Microsoft Account Termination Request Security Alert" Phishing Email Scam
From: Microsoft.com Team <enterpriseproducts@outlook.com>
Sent: Wednesday, September 20, 2017 9:42 PM
To: msn_members@outlook.com
Subject: Security Alert! (Action Required)
Microsoft
Dear Valued Customer,
Our records indicate that you recently made a request to terminate your account.
We will process your request shortly
you will lose all emails associated with your account
if you have no knowledge about this request process, kindly cancel the request below.
Cancel Request or confirm Here to proceed with your request
Thank You
Outlook! Member Service ©2017
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 after signing in. This is will prevent Microsoft users from visiting phishing websites disguised as legitimate Microsoft website that steal account credentials.