Phishing scams impersonating legitimate companies continue to evolve in sophistication, using convincing branding and urgency tactics to deceive victims. One such scam is the “American Express Merchant Reward” phishing email claiming users have pending credit payments, aimed to steal sensitive information. This article will examine how this scam works, how to identify it, and steps to take if one falls prey.
What is the American Express ‘Merchant Reward’ Email Scam?
The “American Express Merchant Reward” phishing email pretends the recipient has an incoming credit payment from American Express as a “Merchant Reward” ranging from thousands to ten thousands of dollars. To supposedly receive this payment, the email instructs victims to download an attached HTML file disguised as an American Express sign-in page to “verify their account ownership.”
In reality, this is a phishing scam unaffiliated with American Express. The attachment is designed to steal account login credentials and other personal data when victims try to collect their non-existent rewards. This information is then used by scammers for financial fraud or identity theft.
Here is how the American Express ‘Merchant Reward’ email scam may look:
Subject: You Have New Pending Credit Payment on Your Account
AMERICAN EXPRESS
Merchant Reward Credit of $5789.78 was issued to your account
For safety reasons, Please download attachment to review payment. Update and verify your account ownership is required as a means to accept your payment.
Notice: Account wlll be credited within 24hrs after you verify your ownership
Thank you for choosing American Express
How Does the American Express ‘Merchant Reward’ Scam Work?
The American Express “Merchant Reward” phishing scam email starts off by appearing legitimate on the surface. The scam email is carefully designed to mimic a real message from American Express, using the company’s branding, logos, and messaging style. This is done to trick recipients into thinking the email originates from American Express.
The subject line often states something like “You Have New Pending Credit Payment on Your Account” to grab the victim’s attention. In the body of the email, scammers inform recipients they have been issued a “Merchant Reward Credit” ranging from several thousand dollars to over ten thousand dollars. This fictional reward credit is intended to excite recipients with the promise of a large sum of unexpected money.
To supposedly obtain this reward payment, the fraudulent email instructs victims to download an attached HTML file. This attachment is made to resemble the legitimate American Express account login page. Recipients are told they must use this file to verify their account ownership in order to accept and receive their big reward credit.
However, in reality, this attachment is a phishing file completely unassociated with American Express. The fake login page is a trap aimed at stealing sensitive personal and financial data from victims once they try to input their account credentials. The scam email stresses the importance of immediate action, claiming the reward payment will expire if account ownership is not verified quickly. This creates a sense of urgency to pressure victims into downloading the file and providing their information without deeper scrutiny.
As soon as victims open the deceptive attachment and enter their American Express username and password into what they believe is a real company login page, this highly sensitive information is harvested by the scammers behind the phishing attack. With access to username and password credentials, as well as any other personal data entered, the scammers can infiltrate the victim’s real American Express account.
From here, the stolen account can be used to make fraudulent purchases and transactions, steal money, or access even more personal information that could facilitate identity theft. The scammers may also sell off the account details to other cybercriminals looking to exploit compromised accounts and identities for financial gain. Essentially, the phishing scam leverages a fictitious reward ploy and impersonation of American Express to trick well-meaning recipients into unwittingly surrendering the keys to their account and identity.
How to Spot the American Express ‘Merchant Reward’ Scam
While sophisticated, some tips can help identify and avoid this phishing scam:
Suspicious sender: Email address does not match official American Express domains. Sender is random or spoofed.
Spelling errors: Phishing emails tend to contain typos, grammar errors, and other mistakes.
Generic greeting: Scam emails will use generic greetings like “Dear cardholder” rather than your name.
Request for information: American Express would never ask for sensitive account information over email. Any such request is a red flag.
Sense of urgency: Tactics pressuring immediate action are used to short-circuit better judgment.
Attachments and links: American Express would not send account login pages as attachments in emails. These are phishing links/files.
Overly generous rewards: Extremely high fake payment amounts like $10,000 are used as bait but are atypical of real rewards.
Call for account verification: American Express does not verify user accounts through emailed files or urgent payments. Delete any such emails.
What to Do If You Fell Victim to This Scam
If you entered your American Express account details into one of these phishing attachments, take these steps quickly to minimize damages:
Contact American Express: Alert them your credentials were compromised through a phishing scam so they can secure your account.
Reset account password: Immediately change your American Express password so scammers lose access. Enable two-factor authentication if possible.
Review statements: Check statements regularly for any unauthorized transactions made using stolen account data. Report any found.
Contact banks: For accounts with linked payment sources, contact associated financial institutions regarding potential fraudulent charges.
Place fraud alert: Consider placing an initial 90-day fraud alert with credit bureaus to be notified of any suspicious activity.
Monitor credit reports: Order free credit reports to watch for signs of identity theft stemming from lost personal information.
Report phishing email: Forward the phishing scam to American Express, the FTC, and cybersecurity authorities to help warn and protect others.
Is Your Device Infected? Scan for Malware
If your computer or phone is slow, showing unwanted pop-ups, or acting strangely, malware could be the cause. Running a scan with Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free is one of the most reliable ways to detect and remove harmful software. The free version can identify and clean common infections such as adware, browser hijackers, trojans, and other unwanted programs.
Malwarebytes works on Windows, Mac, and Android devices. Choose your operating system below and follow the steps to scan your device and remove any malware that might be slowing it down.
Malwarebytes for WindowsMalwarebytes for MacMalwarebytes for Android
Run a Malware Scan with Malwarebytes for Windows
Malwarebytes stands out as one of the leading and widely-used anti-malware solutions for Windows, and for good reason. It effectively eradicates various types of malware that other programs often overlook, all at no cost to you. When it comes to disinfecting an infected device, Malwarebytes has consistently been a free and indispensable tool in the battle against malware. We highly recommend it for maintaining a clean and secure system.
Download Malwarebytes
Download the latest version of Malwarebytes for Windows using the official link below. Malwarebytes will scan your computer and remove adware, browser hijackers, and other malicious software for free.
(The above link will open a new page from where you can download Malwarebytes)
Install Malwarebytes
After the download is complete, locate the MBSetup file, typically found in your Downloads folder. Double-click on the MBSetup file to begin the installation of Malwarebytes on your computer. If a User Account Control pop-up appears, click “Yes” to continue the Malwarebytes installation.
Follow the On-Screen Prompts to Install Malwarebytes
When the Malwarebytes installation begins, the setup wizard will guide you through the process.
You’ll first be prompted to choose the type of computer you’re installing the program on—select either “Personal Computer” or “Work Computer” as appropriate, then click on Next.
Malwarebytes will now begin the installation process on your device.
When the Malwarebytes installation is complete, the program will automatically open to the “Welcome to Malwarebytes” screen.
On the final screen, simply click on the Open Malwarebytes option to start the program.
Enable “Rootkit scanning”.
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware will now start, and you will see the main screen as shown below. To maximize Malwarebytes’ ability to detect malware and unwanted programs, we need to enable rootkit scanning. Click on the “Settings” gear icon located on the left of the screen to access the general settings section.
In the settings menu, enable the “Scan for rootkits” option by clicking the toggle switch until it turns blue.
Now that you have enabled rootkit scanning, click on the “Dashboard” button in the left pane to get back to the main screen.
Perform a Scan with Malwarebytes.
To start a scan, click the Scan button. Malwarebytes will automatically update its antivirus database and begin scanning your computer for malicious programs.
Wait for the Malwarebytes scan to complete.
Malwarebytes will now scan your computer for browser hijackers and other malicious programs. This process can take a few minutes, so we suggest you do something else and periodically check the status of the scan to see when it is finished.
Quarantine detected malware
Once the Malwarebytes scan is complete, it will display a list of detected malware, adware, and potentially unwanted programs. To effectively remove these threats, click the “Quarantine” button.
Malwarebytes will now delete all of the files and registry keys and add them to the program’s quarantine.
Restart your computer.
When removing files, Malwarebytes may require a reboot to fully eliminate some threats. If you see a message indicating that a reboot is needed, please allow it. Once your computer has restarted and you are logged back in, you can continue with the remaining steps.
Once the scan completes, remove all detected threats. Your Windows computer should now be clean and running smoothly again, free of trojans, adware, and other malware.
If your current antivirus allowed this malicious program on your computer, you may want to consider purchasing Malwarebytes Premium to protect against these types of threats in the future. If you are still having problems with your computer after completing these instructions, then please follow one of the steps:
Malwarebytes for Mac is an on-demand scanner that can destroy many types of malware that other software tends to miss without costing you absolutely anything. When it comes to cleaning up an infected device, Malwarebytes has always been free, and we recommend it as an essential tool in the fight against malware.
Download Malwarebytes for Mac.
You can download Malwarebytes for Mac by clicking the link below.
When Malwarebytes has finished downloading, double-click on the setup file to install Malwarebytes on your computer. In most cases, downloaded files are saved to the Downloads folder.
Follow the on-screen prompts to install Malwarebytes.
When the Malwarebytes installation begins, you will see the Malwarebytes for Mac Installer which will guide you through the installation process. Click “Continue“, then keep following the prompts to continue with the installation process.
When your Malwarebytes installation completes, the program opens to the Welcome to Malwarebytes screen. Click the “Get started” button.
Select “Personal Computer” or “Work Computer”.
The Malwarebytes Welcome screen will first ask you what type of computer are you installing this program, click either Personal Computer or Work Computer.
Click on “Scan”.
To scan your computer with Malwarebytes, click on the “Scan” button. Malwarebytes for Mac will automatically update the antivirus database and start scanning your computer for malware.
Wait for the Malwarebytes scan to complete.
Malwarebytes will scan your computer for adware, browser hijackers, and other malicious programs. This process can take a few minutes, so we suggest you do something else and periodically check on the status of the scan to see when it is finished.
Click on “Quarantine”.
When the scan has been completed, you will be presented with a screen showing the malware infections that Malwarebytes has detected. To remove the malware that Malwarebytes has found, click on the “Quarantine” button.
Restart computer.
Malwarebytes will now remove all the malicious files that it has found. To complete the malware removal process, Malwarebytes may ask you to restart your computer.
After scanning, delete any detected threats. Your Mac should now be free from adware, unwanted extensions, and other potentially harmful software.
If your current antivirus allowed a malicious program on your computer, you might want to consider purchasing the full-featured version of Malwarebytes Anti-Malware to protect against these types of threats in the future. If you are still experiencing problems while trying to remove a malicious program from your computer, please ask for help in our Mac Malware Removal Help & Support forum.
Run a Malware Scan with Malwarebytes for Android
Malwarebytes for Android automatically detects and removes dangerous threats like malware and ransomware so you don’t have to worry about your most-used device being compromised. Aggressive detection of adware and potentially unwanted programs keeps your Android phone or tablet running smooth.
Download Malwarebytes for Android.
You can download Malwarebytes for Android by clicking the link below.
In the Google Play Store, tap “Install” to install Malwarebytes for Android on your device.
When the installation process has finished, tap “Open” to begin using Malwarebytes for Android. You can also open Malwarebytes by tapping on its icon in your phone menu or home screen.
Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the setup process
When Malwarebytes will open, you will see the Malwarebytes Setup Wizard which will guide you through a series of permissions and other setup options. This is the first of two screens that explain the difference between the Premium and Free versions. Swipe this screen to continue. Tap on “Got it” to proceed to the next step. Malwarebytes for Android will now ask for a set of permissions that are required to scan your device and protect it from malware. Tap on “Give permission” to continue. Tap on “Allow” to permit Malwarebytes to access the files on your phone.
Update database and run a scan with Malwarebytes for Android
You will now be prompted to update the Malwarebytes database and run a full system scan.
Click on “Update database” to update the Malwarebytes for Android definitions to the latest version, then click on “Run full scan” to perform a system scan.
Wait for the Malwarebytes scan to complete.
Malwarebytes will now start scanning your phone for adware and other malicious apps. This process can take a few minutes, so we suggest you do something else and periodically check on the status of the scan to see when it is finished.
Click on “Remove Selected”.
When the scan has been completed, you will be presented with a screen showing the malware infections that Malwarebytes for Android has detected. To remove the malicious apps that Malwarebytes has found, tap on the “Remove Selected” button.
Restart your phone.
Malwarebytes for Android will now remove all the malicious apps that it has found. To complete the malware removal process, Malwarebytes may ask you to restart your device.
When the scan is finished, remove all detected threats. Your Android phone should now be free of malicious apps, adware, and unwanted browser redirects.
If your current antivirus allowed a malicious app on your phone, you may want to consider purchasing the full-featured version of Malwarebytes to protect against these types of threats in the future. If you are still having problems with your phone after completing these instructions, then please follow one of the steps:
Restore your phone to factory settings by going to Settings > General management > Reset > Factory data reset.
After cleaning your device, it’s important to protect it from future infections and annoying pop-ups. We recommend installing an ad blocker such as AdGuard. AdGuard blocks malicious ads, prevents phishing attempts, and stops dangerous redirects, helping you stay safe while browsing online.
Conclusion
The “American Express Merchant Reward” phishing scam exhibits the importance of identifying and avoiding such frauds attempting to impersonate trusted institutions. With scam awareness, enough skepticism of emails demanding sensitive data, and overall cybersecurity vigilance, users can evade this scam and other phishing attempts targeting their valuable personal and financial information.
Stelian leverages over a decade of cybersecurity expertise to lead malware analysis and removal, uncover scams, and educate people. His experience provides insightful analysis and valuable perspective.
