Security News > 2022 > January > Shipment-Delivery Scams Become the Favored Way to Spread Malware

Threat actors are increasingly using scams that spoof package couriers like DHL or the U.S. Postal Service in authentic-looking phishing emails that attempt to dupe victims into downloading credential-stealing or other malicious payloads, researchers have found.

Scams related to the courier accounted for 23 percent of all phishing emails during that time frame when the company's name had been attached to only 9 percent of scams in the third quarter.

Researchers from Avanan earlier this month discovered a new wave of hackers spoofing DHL in phishing emails that aim to spread "a dangerous Trojan virus" by notifying victims that a shipment has arrived and asking them to click on an attachment to find out more details.

Researchers attributed a couple of factors behind the ramp-up in scams related to package delivery.

An unrelated study from security firm F-Secure that simulated sending phishing emails to more than 82,000 corporate employees found that email scams aiming to share a document with, or to report a service issue to, potential victims likely will have more success when documents are tied to a trusted brand.

The emails used to deliver Trickbot include official USPS branding as well as details such as third-party social-media logos from Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter, "To make the email look even more legitimate," researchers wrote.

News URL

https://threatpost.com/shipment-delivery-scams-a-fav-way-to-spread-malware/178050/