Online Threat Alerts (OTA) - Alerting you to scams and frauds.

The "Microsoft Outlook 2018 Mail Extension" Scam
The Microsoft Outlook 2018 Mail Extension Scam

The fake "Microsoft Outlook Kindly Extend your Email Account" email below, which claims the recipients 2018 mail extension is due, is a phishing scam being sent by cybercriminals. The fake email 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 "Microsoft Outlook 2018 Mail Extension" Phishing Scam

From: Microsoft Outlook <psalm_23@live.com>

Sent: Thursday, August 30, 2018 2:33:33 AM

To: outlookmail@service.com

Subject: Kindly extend your email account

Outlook.com

Hello,

Your 2018 mail extension is due. You would be blocked from sending and receiving emails if not confirmed within 24 hrs of receiving this automated email.

Kindly click here to extend your account

2018 Microsoft Terms of Use Privacy & Cookies Developers

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 steal account credentials.

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