A large-scale phishing attack has been launched in Germany, affecting up to 12 million customers of the telecommunications company 1&1.
The cybercriminals behind the attack have sent out fraudulent emails that appear to be official communications from the company. The German Consumer Protection Center (Verbraucherzentrale) has issued a warning to the public about this dangerous campaign.
The deceptive emails claim there is a “synchronization error” with the recipient’s account and urge immediate action to verify their account linked to their email address. A link provided in the email leads to a counterfeit website, designed to steal personal information from unsuspecting users.
Security experts advise users to be cautious of suspicious emails, particularly those lacking personalized greetings, such as addressing the recipient by name. To verify the legitimacy of any communication, they recommend visiting the official 1&1 website directly.
This phishing attempt is part of a broader trend of increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks. Recently, customers of ING Bank in Germany were targeted with similar phishing tactics, while users of services like WhatsApp, Netflix, and Disney+ have also been vulnerable to scams involving fraudulent security codes or fake account warnings. Cybercriminals continue to refine their methods, making these phishing emails more convincing and widespread.
