Scam E-mail Impersonating ASIC Targeting Australian Businessmen

MailGuard, the e-mail filtering firm of Australia warns of e-mails posing as communication from ASIC (Australian Securities and Investments Commission) which regulates corporate houses in the country, while deliver malware after spamming people's inboxes countrywide.

MailGuard the e-mail security provider cautions about malware tainted e-mails that struck mailboxes at 9:43 am on July 10. Since then the attack fast heightened to become a very large scaled malware delivery spam, one that MailGuard identified since 2016.

The exploit, provided through a phishing e-mail disguised as from ASIC informs receivers that they have to now renew their company name. It then asks them to follow certain given web-link for taking down the related renewal notice. But on clicking, the web-link pulls down one zipped file that has one malevolent JavaScript file.

According to MailGuard, it is not yet clear what precise kind of malware it is; however, it seeks to disrupt, destruct else acquire hold over the victim's computer. Crn.com posted this online dated July 10, 2017.

Initially it seems the e-mail is sent from the messaging service of ASIC while its domain is ASIC.Transaction.No-reply@asicdesk.com[altered]. Understandably, this domain-name's registration has been recently done within China.

With "Renewal" as the header in the e-mail, the properly formatted missive shows the branding of ASIC as well as other government signs. The message is unusual because it addresses the reader more generally with "Dear Customer," rather than use his name to make the e-mail personal, something that genuine organizations avoid.

The e-mail as well gives all information regarding the way to renew the recipient's company name and that he can make the renewal's payment via his credit card alternatively through an invoice he requires requesting. Eventually, signing off is Senior Executive Leader and Registry, Myra Tango. But MailGuard says there is no one in that name at ASIC.

The e-mail appears especially suspicious because it contains one properly formatted message which utilizes the government's symbols in addition to ASIC's branding. Reportedly, the e-mail scam counts the fourth one in 2017 that widely spread masquerading as the watchdog for corporate houses that is targeting Australia enterprises.

» SPAMfighter News - 7/12/2017