Watch Out For “RAT Malware” Extortion Emails Demanding Bitcoin
Written by: Stelian Pilici
Published on:
A troubling new spin on sextortion email scams has emerged – the Remote Administration Tool or RAT scam. This involves emails pretending your device was infected with RAT malware that recorded compromising videos through your webcam.
The scam email threatens to leak the fake videos publicly unless you pay a ransom in Bitcoin. This type of digital extortion uses fear tactics to manipulate victims.
This article will provide an in-depth look at how the RAT email scam operates, psychological tricks it uses, and most importantly, how to protect yourself. With vigilance and education, we can identify and shut down these scams.
This Article Contains:
Overview of the RAT Email Scam
The RAT email scam starts with a message claiming your device was previously infected with a Remote Administration Tool or RAT. This is spyware allowing remote access and control.
This is the text of the Remote Administration Tool blackmail email scam, including the grammatical and spelling errors:
From: Got You quickbooks@notification.intuit.com
Hello
I know your password!
I infected you with a malware (RAT)/(Remote Administration Tool), some time ago and since then, I have been observing your actions. The malware gave me full access and control over your system, meaning, I can see everything on your screen, turn on your camera or microphone and you won’t even notice about it, yes such things exist, you can Google it!
I have also access to all your contacts, I collected everything private from you, pictures, videos, everything!
And I MADE A VIDEO SHOWING BOTH YOU (through your webcam) AND THE VIDEO YOU WERE WATCHING (on the screen) WHILE SATISFYING YOURSELF!
I can send this video to all your contacts (email, social network) and publish all your private stuff everywhere!
You can prevent me from doing this!
To stop me, transfer exactly: 400$ with the current bitcoin (BTC) price to my bitcoin address.
If you don’t know how to get bitcoin, Google – “How to buy Bitcoin”, it’s very simple for example with credit card. The wallet you can create here: https://www.blockchain.com
My bitcoin address is: bc1qn8lf2w0v24uvk7x7epmmftuqyhtlkvf44ng6td
Copy and paste my address – it’s (CASE-sensitive).
You know this all isn’t a joke, you got the proof above!
I think it’s a very good price compared to the damage and hell it can bring into your life!
After receiving the payment, I will delete everything from you and you can life your live in peace like before. I give you 3 days to get the bitcoins!
Don’t share this email with anyone, this should stay our little secret!
Here are the key characteristics of this scam email:
1. Subject Line Creates Urgent Tone
A subject line stating “Warning, you are hacked” or similar sets an urgent and threatening tone even before opening the email.
2. Claims Webcam Was Remotely Accessed
The email states that the fictional RAT malware enabled remote access to your webcam, files, and other information.
3. Accuses Recipient of Visiting Porn Sites
To inspire shame and fear, the email alleges compromising videos were captured of you visiting adult websites and performing sexual acts.
4. Threatens To Leak Footage Publicly
The scam email threatens to share the fake adult videos with all your contacts to force compliance with the ransom demand.
5. Demands Untraceable Ransom Payment
Payment in Bitcoin is demanded within a short timeframe. Bitcoin makes tracking the scammers nearly impossible.
6. Warns Against Involving Law Enforcement
The email warns recipients not to contact authorities, or the videos will be leaked immediately. This aims to enable the scam.
The RAT email scam exploits fear and embarrassment to extort money. But knowledge of its strategies allows one to detect the deception.
How the RAT Email Scam Works
To fully grasp this scam, we need to analyze the social engineering and psychological manipulation tactics used in the email:
Step 1. Establishing Credibility as a Hacker
The email wants to first establish credibility as an elite hacker. Talking about infecting your device with RAT malware and remotely spying aims to sound technically legitimate.
Step 2. Inspiring Fear of Total Device Compromise
By claiming full access to your files, camera and accounts, the email wants to make you feel totally compromised and powerless. This scares recipients.
Step 3. Weaponizing Shame and Embarrassment
Allegations of visiting adult sites and recording inappropriate videos aim to make the victim feel deeply ashamed and humiliated. This clouds judgement.
Step 4. Threatening Devastating Reputational Harm
Threatening to spread fake videos to all of someone’s contacts inspires tremendous fear of reputational ruin and public embarrassment.
Step 5. Establishing an Illusion of Inescapability
Claiming they can see if you read the email makes the situation appear inescapable. This scares recipients into complying with demands.
Step 6. Demanding Anonymous and Irreversible Ransom Payment
Demanding bitcoin makes tracking or reversing the payment nearly impossible. This enables the scam while protecting the criminal.
By studying the psychological tricks and deceptions, we can recognize RAT extortion emails as malicious scams rather than assuming they are legitimate.
How to Spot and Avoid This Scam
Here are some tips to identify and protect yourself from the RAT malware extortion scam email:
Be suspicious of any emails demanding quick payment in bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. This is a sign of ransomware scams.
Watch for urgent threats to release fabricated embarrassing or compromising videos or information about you if payment is not made.
Look for technical cybersecurity terms like “RAT”, “trojan”, “malware”, etc used in threatening context in an attempt to sound more legitimate.
Never open attachments or click links within unsolicited scam emails, as they may contain viruses.
Check the email address of the sender. Scam emails typically come from nonsensical or unfamiliar addresses.
Look for poor grammar, spelling mistakes, and urgent tones which reveal non-native English speakers often behind scams.
Verify email claims by contacting supposed senders directly through known contact channels rather than replying to suspicious messages.
Educate yourself on the latest online extortion and ransomware scam tactics so you can recognize them immediately.
Ensure your computer and internet security are up to date, using strong antivirus and malware protection.
Never communicate with scammers or pay their ransom demands, as this only enables them and funds criminal activities.
Report all extortion emails as phishing/spam to your email provider to block them. Delete the messages immediately.
Staying informed, cautious, and vigilant when viewing unsolicited emails helps avoid falling victim to ransom scams like the fake RAT malware extortion email threat.
What to Do If You Receive This Email
If a RAT extortion email lands in your inbox, stay calm and take these steps:
1. Do Not Reply to the Email
Replying verifies your email address is active. Instead, delete the email immediately without responding.
2. Ignore Payment Demands
No matter how threatening the email seems, never pay the ransom. The scammers do not actually have compromising footage.
3. Scan Devices for Malware
Run complete malware scans just in case there is a real virus. Use reliable antivirus and anti-spyware software.
4. Change Online Account Passwords
Reset passwords on your email, banking, and other online accounts as a precaution. Enable two-factor authentication also.
5. Watch for Related Extortion Attempts
Scammers may send further emails with more threats if you don’t pay. Ignore these completely.
6. Report the Email as Phishing
Forward the scam email to your email provider’s phishing or abuse department so they can block the sender.
7. Educate Yourself on Similar Scams
Learn about related sextortion, spyware, and malware scams so you can recognize and avoid them in the future.
8. Warn Contacts About the Scam
Kindly alert friends and family to ignore if they receive a RAT extortion email too. This prevents the scam from spreading.
Rest assured, the scammers do not actually have illicit videos of you. With vigilance, we can shut down these scams and watch out for each other.
Is Your Device Infected? Check for Malware
If your device is running slowly or acting suspicious, it may be infected with malware. Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free is a great option for scanning your device and detecting potential malware or viruses. The free version can efficiently check for and remove many common infections.
Malwarebytes can run on Windows, Mac, and Android devices. Depending on which operating system is installed on the device you’re trying to run a Malwarebytes scan, please click on the tab below and follow the displayed steps.
Malwarebytes For WindowsMalwarebytes For MacMalwarebytes For Android
Scan your computer with Malwarebytes for Windows to remove malware
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 for Windows
You can download Malwarebytes by clicking the link below.
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.
Your computer should now be free of trojans, adware, browser hijackers, 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:
Scan your computer with Malwarebytes for Mac to remove malware
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.
Your Mac should now be free of adware, browser hijackers, and other malware.
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.
Scan your phone with Malwarebytes for Android to remove malware
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.
Your phone should now be free of adware, browser hijackers, and other malware.
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.
This scam sends emails claiming to have infected your device with RAT malware that recorded embarrassing videos of you through your webcam. The email threatens to leak the videos publicly unless a ransom is paid.
What is RAT malware?
RAT stands for Remote Administration Tool. It is real malware that allows remote control over a target device. But in this scam, claims of infecting you with RAT are fabricated.
Can the scammers actually leak videos of me? No, the scammers do not really have any private videos of you. The threats are completely empty, meant to manipulate you into paying ransom.
Should I pay the ransom amount demanded?
No, you should never pay the ransom demand. The threats are fake and you will lose your money in this scam.
Why do they want payment in bitcoin?
Bitcoin offers anonymity to scammers, making it impossible for victims to trace them. It also attracts less scrutiny for money laundering purposes.
What precautions should I take after getting this email?
Scan your devices for malware, reset passwords on accounts, monitor financial statements, report the email as phishing, and learn to identify similar scams.
Can I track down the scammers behind this email?
It is very difficult to trace cyber extortion scammers since they mask their digital footprints. But you can report them to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.
How can I spot similar scam emails in the future?
Look for emails demanding quick untraceable payment in bitcoin, threats of leaking fabricated videos, and warnings not to tell others.
Who should I contact if I have other concerns?
Reach out to your email provider or local law enforcement if you have any additional questions. The FBI’s IC3 also accepts scam reports from victims.
The Bottom Line
The RAT email scam uses devious psychological tactics to trick recipients with threats of leaking fictional videos from your webcam. By demanding quick ransom payments, the scammers aim to extort money through fear.
Remember that any supposed hacker threatening you via email is almost certainly bluffing. Do not respond or open attachments to unsolicited messages. Take smart precautions like scanning devices and resetting passwords.
Most crucially, insightful awareness of the social engineering methods used in this scam allows one to detect the deception. Stay calm and do not give in to threats or ransom demands. Together, we can guard against evolving extortion scams by sharing information and resources.
How to Stay Safe Online
Here are 10 basic security tips to help you avoid malware and protect your device:
Use a good antivirus and keep it up-to-date.
It's essential to use a good quality antivirus and keep it up-to-date to stay ahead of the latest cyber threats. We are huge fans of Malwarebytes Premium and use it on all of our devices, including Windows and Mac computers as well as our mobile devices. Malwarebytes sits beside your traditional antivirus, filling in any gaps in its defenses, and providing extra protection against sneakier security threats.
Keep software and operating systems up-to-date.
Keep your operating system and apps up to date. Whenever an update is released for your device, download and install it right away. These updates often include security fixes, vulnerability patches, and other necessary maintenance.
Be careful when installing programs and apps.
Pay close attention to installation screens and license agreements when installing software. Custom or advanced installation options will often disclose any third-party software that is also being installed. Take great care in every stage of the process and make sure you know what it is you're agreeing to before you click "Next."
Install an ad blocker.
Use a browser-based content blocker, like AdGuard. Content blockers help stop malicious ads, Trojans, phishing, and other undesirable content that an antivirus product alone may not stop.
Be careful what you download.
A top goal of cybercriminals is to trick you into downloading malware—programs or apps that carry malware or try to steal information. This malware can be disguised as an app: anything from a popular game to something that checks traffic or the weather.
Be alert for people trying to trick you.
Whether it's your email, phone, messenger, or other applications, always be alert and on guard for someone trying to trick you into clicking on links or replying to messages. Remember that it's easy to spoof phone numbers, so a familiar name or number doesn't make messages more trustworthy.
Back up your data.
Back up your data frequently and check that your backup data can be restored. You can do this manually on an external HDD/USB stick, or automatically using backup software. This is also the best way to counter ransomware. Never connect the backup drive to a computer if you suspect that the computer is infected with malware.
Choose strong passwords.
Use strong and unique passwords for each of your accounts. Avoid using personal information or easily guessable words in your passwords. Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) on your accounts whenever possible.
Be careful where you click.
Be cautious when clicking on links or downloading attachments from unknown sources. These could potentially contain malware or phishing scams.
Don't use pirated software.
Avoid using Peer-to-Peer (P2P) file-sharing programs, keygens, cracks, and other pirated software that can often compromise your data, privacy, or both.
To avoid potential dangers on the internet, it's important to follow these 10 basic safety rules. By doing so, you can protect yourself from many of the unpleasant surprises that can arise when using the web.
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Meet Stelian Pilici
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.
