Beware of the Phishing Email Asking Verified Users on Twitter to Pay

Many hackers are taking advantage of Twitter's plans. According to sources, one user claimed that the site intended to charge users for the verified mark as a lure in a phishing email. Additionally, journalists from NBC News and TechCrunch received phishing emails that purported to be from Twitter. Additionally, in the email, they were asked to provide personal information in order to maintain their verified status on the platform. On another note, Twitter hasn't yet addressed the problem or made any announcements on any changes to the blue checkmark. However, the phishing email that is going around tries to capitalize on the news by saying that certain verified customers will need to continue paying $19.99 a month starting on November 2 to maintain their verified status. Furthermore, there is a sense of urgency in the email, it reads: "You need to give a short confirmation so that you are not affected by this situation. To receive the verification badge for free and permanently, please confirm that you are a well-known person. If you don't provide verification, you will pay $19.99 every month like other users to get the verification badge." Most importantly, the message really came from a Gmail email account rather than an official Twitter domain, as we can see by taking a closer look at it. What's more According to sources, clicking the "Provide Information" button will take users to a Google Doc page before taking them to another Google website. The website will then prompt them for their Twitter username, password, and phone number, providing hackers with a quick way to access their account. Interestingly, the platform's new owner, Elon Musk, reportedly gave staff members until November 7 to implement a service that will charge for the verified blue check via Twitter Blue. Bottom line It is best to disregard any emails that request personal information while posing as coming from trusted sources like Google, Twitter, or Facebook, and report them to the customer support team of the company. Instead, discover the link to request verification on the company's website on your own. Thus, this is one method of spotting phishing emails. Online users can also alert Google or other internet security organizations about suspicious emails or links. Finally, reading the email address is a simple technique to differentiate between fake and genuine emails. In other news, the phishing email from Twitter doesn't seem to be an attempt to steal accounts. Instead, it's more likely that the ultimate goal is to defraud verified users of some money. In addition, the email is plainly an attempt to generate a sense of urgency and inform them that to preserve the free badge and continue to enjoy their verified status on the site, they must give up verification.