HMRC Taxes Application With Reference 4DEW NASM CBCG RC6 Received – Fake PDF Malware

HMRC taxes application with reference 4DEW NASM CBCG RC6 received pretending to come from noreply@taxreg.hmrc.gov.uk is another one from the current zbot runs which try to drop cryptolocker, ransomware and loads of other malware on your computer. They are using email addresses and subjects that will entice a user to read the email and open the attachment. A very high proportion are being targeted at small and medium size businesses, with the hope of getting a better response than they do from consumers.

Almost all of these have a password stealing component, with the aim of stealing your email or FTP ( web space) log in credentials. Many of them are also designed to specifically steal your facebook and other social network log in details.

Please read our How to protect yourselves page for simple, sensible advice on how to avoid being infected by this sort of socially engineered malware.

The application with reference number 4DEW NASM CBCG RC6 submitted by you or your agent to register for HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) taxes has been received and will now be verified. HMRC will contact you if further information is needed.

The original of this email was scanned for viruses by the Government Secure Intranet virus scanning service supplied by Vodafone in partnership with Symantec. (CCTM Certificate Number 2009/09/0052.) On leaving the GSi this email was certified virus free.

Communications via the GSi may be automatically logged, monitored and/or recorded for legal purposes.

7 August 2021: 4DEW NASM CBCG RC6.zip (8kb) Extracts to 4DEW NASM CBCG RC6.scr Current Virus total detections: 0/54

This HMRC taxes application with reference 4DEW NASM CBCG RC6 received is another one of the spoofed icon files that unless you have “show known file extensions enabled“, will look like a proper PDF file instead of the .exe file it really is, so making it much more likely for you to accidentally open it and be infected.

All of these emails use Social engineering tricks to persuade you to open the attachments that come with the email. Whether it is a message saying “look at this picture of me I took last night” and it appears to come from a friend or is more targeted at somebody who regularly is likely to receive PDF attachments or Word .doc attachments or any other common file that you use every day. Be very careful when unzipping them and make sure you have “show known file extensions enabled“, And then look carefully at the unzipped file. If it says .EXE then it is a problem and should not be run or opened.