Phishing Scam Alert: PayPal Email with Suspicious Links

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SUMMARY

A phishing scam targeting PayPal users was identified through an email received by a user who does not have a PayPal account. The email, which claimed to notify the recipient of a payment, contained a suspicious link that redirected to "employeeportal.net-login.com," disguised as a legitimate PayPal link. The sender's email address was also manipulated to appear as "PayPal ," highlighting the tactics used by scammers to deceive users. Users are advised to report such emails to PayPal's fraud department for further investigation.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of phishing tactics and email spoofing
  • Familiarity with email header analysis
  • Knowledge of how to report phishing attempts to organizations
  • Basic skills in using email clients like iOS Mail and Gmail
NEXT STEPS
  • Research how to analyze email headers for phishing detection
  • Learn about common phishing tactics and how to recognize them
  • Explore tools for reporting phishing emails effectively
  • Investigate security measures to protect against email scams
USEFUL FOR

This discussion is beneficial for anyone concerned about online security, including general email users, cybersecurity professionals, and those interested in understanding phishing scams and how to prevent them.

jtbell
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Today my wife received an e-mail, apparently from PayPal, notifying her that a payment was being made from her PayPal account for a purchase of about $30, and with a link to click if she wanted to dispute it. But... she's never opened a PayPal account.

She was using iOS Mail on her iPad. As far as I can tell (I use iOS Mail on my iPhone, too), there's no option to view the source of a message so as to inspect the links. I had her forward the message to me, so I could open it in Gmail's web interface on my desktop Mac. As soon as I did so, I burst out laughing.

The "From" header, which on iOS mail showed only "From: PayPal", in Gmail read "From: PayPal <receipt@palepal.com>". :cool:

Choosing "view original" showed that the link to the "Resolution Center" pointed to employeeportal.net-login.com. Uh... I don't think so. :rolleyes:
 
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I love how they carefully mangle the PayPal name to palepal. That’s classic. Sometimes they write PayPal.com.xx where who knows where it really is.
 
Paypal probably has a fraud department. They would appreciate it if you forward the email to them.
 

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