‘Email Removal’ Phishing Campaign Impersonates IT Teams To Steal Credentials

MailGuard's threat intelligence team is currently detecting and blocking a sophisticated phishing campaign that is actively targeting businesses across multiple sectors. This attack represents a concerning evolution in credential harvesting techniques, using personalised domain spoofing to create highly convincing fake login pages.

The Threat: Personalised Domain Impersonation

This campaign stands out for its calculated approach to social engineering. The attackers are sending emails that appear to come from each recipient's own IT department, using display names such as "[Recipient's Domain] email team" while masking the true sending address of info(at)intnet-mu(dot)cc.

The attack begins with a deceptively simple email containing a single malicious link. What makes this particularly dangerous is that the recipient's email address is embedded as a parameter in the URL, allowing the phishing site to automatically populate fields and create a convincing, personalised experience.

Here’s what the email looks like:

How the Attack Unfolds

Once a victim clicks the malicious link, they're redirected to a professional-looking "Web Client" login page hosted on kr-mlservice.com.

The page mimics familiar webmail interfaces that many employees use daily, complete with:

• Clean, professional styling that mirrors legitimate email platforms
• The victim's domain prominently displayed in the interface
• Standard login functionality including "Keep me signed in" options
• Convincing error handling that displays "Invalid login username or password" on the first attempt

This deliberate failure on the first login attempt is a calculated psychological manipulation. It mimics the common experience of mistyping credentials, making victims more likely to re-enter their information without suspicion.

After the second login attempt, the system redirects users to an additional credential harvesting page, though the full scope of information being collected remains under investigation.

Red Flags to Watch For

Security teams should alert staff to be particularly vigilant for emails that:

• Claim to be from your own IT department but originate from external domains
• Use generic addresses like "info@" combined with unfamiliar domain extensions
• Create artificial urgency around account removal or service termination
• Direct you to login pages with URLs that don't match your organisation's legitimate domains
• Display professional interfaces but have subtle inconsistencies in branding or functionality

The Broader Implications

This campaign demonstrates the continuing sophistication of modern phishing attacks. By leveraging domain personalisation and realistic error handling, attackers are creating experiences that can fool even security-conscious users. The use of legitimate-looking interfaces and familiar design patterns makes this threat particularly concerning for businesses of all sizes.

Stay Safe, Know the Signs

MailGuard advises all recipients of these emails to delete them immediately without clicking on any links. Responding or providing personal details can lead to identity theft, data breaches, and financial losses.

Avoid emails that:

• Aren’t addressed to you personally.
• Are unexpected and urge immediate action.
• Contain poor grammar or miss crucial identifying details.
• Direct you to a suspicious URL that isn’t associated with the genuine company.

Many businesses turn to MailGuard after a near miss or incident. 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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