Query suspect email

Question

I have received an email purported to be from lADMINISTRAT0R< ******@aol.com > is this a scam?

MlCR0S0FT

|| | -------- | || | -------- | Dear Valued Customer,

We emailed you last month to inform you of changes to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. These changes are critical steps in shaping what's ahead for our customers, like you, by providing transparency and choice over how and when their data is used. To continue accessing your Mailbox after January 29 2026, you must Confirm your acceptance of the Terms of Service.   To get started,

Dear Valued Customer,

We emailed you last month to inform you of changes to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. These changes are critical steps in shaping what's ahead for our customers, like you, by providing transparency and choice over how and when their data is used. To continue accessing your Mailbox after January 29 2026, you must Confirm your acceptance of the Terms of Service.   To get started,

|| || Dear Valued Customer,

We emailed you last month to inform you of changes to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. These changes are critical steps in shaping what's ahead for our customers, like you, by providing transparency and choice over how and when their data is used. To continue accessing your Mailbox after January 29 2026, you must Confirm your acceptance of the Terms of Service.   To get started,

Dear Valued Customer,

We emailed you last month to inform you of changes to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. These changes are critical steps in shaping what's ahead for our customers, like you, by providing transparency and choice over how and when their data is used. To continue accessing your Mailbox after January 29 2026, you must Confirm your acceptance of the Terms of Service.   To get started,

Dear Valued Customer,

We emailed you last month to inform you of changes to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. These changes are critical steps in shaping what's ahead for our customers, like you, by providing transparency and choice over how and when their data is used. To continue accessing your Mailbox after January 29 2026, you must Confirm your acceptance of the Terms of Service.   To get started,

Confirm Now--------Confirm Now****Confirm Now

Kindly take the above step when this email has been opened by you, so you don't get locked out of your email without access.Thank you for being a valued Outlook Customer.Please do not reply to this email.--------Kindly take the above step when this email has been opened by you, so you don't get locked out of your email without access.Thank you for being a valued Outlook Customer.Please do not reply to this email.Kindly take the above step when this email has been opened by you, so you don't get locked out of your email without access.

Thank you for being a valued Outlook Customer.

Please do not reply to this email.

Kindly take the above step when this email has been opened by you, so you don't get locked out of your email without access.Thank you for being a valued Outlook Customer.Please do not reply to this email.Kindly take the above step when this email has been opened by you, so you don't get locked out of your email without access.Thank you for being a valued Outlook Customer.Please do not reply to this email..

[Moderator edit: Changed tags from: Microsoft Security | Microsoft Authenticator ]

Answer 1

Hey there, John Joyce Simpson

The email you received is a SCAM. Please ignore it.

The email gives it away as it is not from the @microsoft.com domain.

When you hover over the links, they don't point to Microsoft sites.

They point to a completely different site. This is a known phishing attempt. They often mask the URL by having the text display the correct address, or wording, but the actual URL points elsewhere. So people think they are going to a Microsoft site, when actually, they are going to the phishing site where the hacker will obtain personal information from the user.

This is one that I have received last Monday.

The first giveaway is the email address (at the top). It doesn't have the @Microsoft.com domain to it. The second giveaway is the link 'Update now'. When you hover your mouse over the link, the tool tip shows a completely different address, not even pointing to Microsoft.

When Microsoft does update their privacy statement (In August each year), they do send you an email. However, the best practice to follow is:

• Never click onto any links in the email,
• Never respond to the email,
• Navigate to the page yourself using the browser URL
  • So for me, I would have gone to Outlook.com and clicked onto Settings.
  • You would have navigated to this page to view the privacy: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/legal/terms-of-use?msockid=012fee8ffecc600a2c82fb63ff776173
• Check the senders address is from the right domain
• Does the email look legitimate,
• If in doubt, ask

In any case, Microsoft will send you an email about the updated terms of service. However, they will not ask you to do anything to keep your account active. They just inform that they have been changed. Then leave it to you to review the changes.

You can use the built in report method and mark it as phishing. This moves the email to your Junk folder and will report it to Microsoft.

Hope this helps,
Nathan

Answer 2

The email you received appears to be a phishing scam. Here are some indicators:

1. Sender's Email Address: The email is from lADMINISTRAT0R<******@aol.com>, which does not match the legitimate domains used by Microsoft support (like microsoft.com, microsoftsupport.com, or mail.support.microsoft.com). Emails from Microsoft should come from these official domains.
2. Urgency and Threats: Phishing emails often create a sense of urgency or fear, suggesting that you must act quickly to avoid losing access to your account. The message you shared indicates that you need to confirm acceptance of terms to avoid being locked out, which is a common tactic used in scams.
3. Links to Confirm: The email contains links asking you to confirm your acceptance. Legitimate companies typically do not ask for sensitive information or actions through unsolicited emails.
4. Generic Greeting: The use of "Dear Valued Customer" instead of your name is another common characteristic of phishing attempts.

If you suspect that this email is a phishing attempt, do not click on any links or provide any personal information. You can report it to Microsoft and follow their guidelines on how to handle phishing emails. For more information on identifying phishing emails, you can refer to Microsoft's resources on protecting yourself from phishing scams.