‘Billing Accounts Being Misused ‘ Apple ID Phishing Scam
The original site is no longer online; links go to the Internet Archive copy.
The claim
Subject: We see your billing accounts being misused on other devices at March 20 2019
Support / ID / 5432654
What the fact-checkers found
Online criminals continue to target Apple users via phishing emails.
This phishing attack starts with an email that has the subject line “We see your billing accounts being misused on other devices.”
The body of the email has no content other than a fake Support ID reference number. But an attached Microsoft Word template (.dot) file promises more information.
Having raised your concerns via the email’s subject line, the scammers hope that you will go ahead and open the attached file without due caution.
Clicking the attachment opens a document that purports to be from Apple Support and features the Apple logo. The document claims that your Apple ID is set to be disabled because of violated policies. It further claims that your account information appears to be invalid and unverified.
It urges you to click a link to sign in and verify your account as soon as possible or risk losing your emails and iCloud data.
Clicking the link opens a fraudulent website that asks for your Apple ID login credentials, your credit card numbers, and other identifying information.
The fake site looks like it is part of the official Apple website.
Criminals can use the information you submit on the bogus website to hijack your Apple account, commit credit card fraud, and steal your identity.
A very similar version of this scam includes the “violated policies” notice within the body of the email rather than as an attached file. Scammers sometimes use file attachments in the hope of thwarting email spam filters.
Apple ID phishing scams are widespread and take many forms. Be wary of any message that purports to be from Apple and claims that you must click a link or open an attachment to deal with a supposed account problem. To help protect your account, always login to Apple by entering the address into your browser’s address bar or via a trusted app.
The Apple website includes information about identifying and reporting these phishing emails.
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