A new DocuSign scam email is being intercepted by MailGuard, using a fake ‘Salary Distribution Memo & Financial’ PDF document as the bait to lure curious employees into disclosing their sensitive Microsoft credentials.
The emails employ DocuSign branding, with a subject line reading ‘New Benefits & Bonus Distribution ID-29767297’, and are otherwise free from obvious errors, a tell-tale sign of sloppy scams. To boost authenticity, they include some personalisation with the company name of the recipient inserted into the template, and the recipient email address used in the email copy.
An example of the email is shown below:
After clicking on the ‘REVIEW DOCUMENT’ link, users are presented with a phishing page that mimics Microsoft, asking users to enter their Microsoft credentials.
The scammers demonstrate a degree of sophistication, as they use advanced techniques to validate that the correct email address and password are being submitted.
With data validation, the user cannot proceed unless an approved email address is submitted, and the page also attempts to validate the password.
By entering their password, users are inadvertently disclosing their Microsoft access credentials to the cybercriminals behind the attack, potentially also enabling a breach of their employers network and systems.
Scams impersonating DocuSign that lead to a Microsoft login page are not uncommon, such as these ones from February and May 2023, and February 2024.
MailGuard advises all recipients of the emails to delete them immediately without clicking on any links. Responding or providing your personal details can result in your sensitive information being used for criminal activity and may have a severe negative impact on your business and its’ financial well-being.
MailGuard urges users not to click links or open attachments within emails that:
- Are not addressed to you by name.
- Appear to be from a legitimate company but use poor English or omits personal details that a legitimate sender would include.
- Are from businesses that you were not expecting to hear from, and/or
- Take you to a landing page or website that is not the legitimate URL of the company the email is purporting to be sent from.
- Many businesses turn to MailGuard after an incident or a near miss, often as a result of an email similar to the one shown above. If unwanted emails are a problem for your business, don’t wait until it’s too late.
Reach out to our team for a confidential discussion by emailing expert@mailguard.com.au or calling 1300 30 44 30.
One email is all that it takes
All that it takes to devastate your business is a cleverly worded email message that can steal sensitive user credentials or disrupt your business operations. If scammers can trick one person in your company into clicking on a malicious link or attachment, they can gain access to your data or inflict damage on your business.
For a few dollars per staff member per month, you can protect your business with MailGuard's specialist, 'zero zero-day' email security. Special Ops for when speed matters! Our real-time 'zero zero-day', email threat detection amplifies our client’s intelligence, knowledge, security and defence. Talk to a solution consultant at MailGuard today about securing your company's inboxes.
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