Gmail Update: Big news for Gmail users. Google has issued an important warning for all Gmail users. This warning from Google has been issued regarding a new phishing scam. In this scam, cyber criminals trap users by sending fake emails that look like the original ones and bypass security checks and take their account details from them. Google has acknowledged this threat and is working to roll out a security update.
What is this scam?
The cyber attack came to light when software developer Nick Johnson reported an email he received on X from ‘no-reply@google.com’. The fake email appeared completely official. It claimed that a subpoena had been issued for his Google account data. The email included a link to what looked like a legitimate Google support page. In reality, the page was a phishing site hosted on Google’s own platform sites.google.com.
Passed Google’s Authentication Checks
What made the email particularly trustworthy was that it passed Google’s authentication checks, including DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM). The phishing message was delivered in the same Gmail conversation thread as the real Google security alert, further increasing its perceived legitimacy. Clicking on the link took users to a cloned Google sign-in page hosted on a Google subdomain. This page was designed to harvest login credentials under the guise of allowing users to contest the subpoena. Entering the credentials gave the hackers full access to the user’s Gmail and associated data.
What Gmail users should do?
Until Google’s update is fully rolled out, Gmail users should avoid clicking on links provided in fake security alerts. Users should verify suspicious emails by logging into their accounts directly through the official Google website. Activating two-factor authentication and passkey helps prevent credential theft.