The Hook It happened to me this morning. I received an email from "Apple" regarding a hardware purchase I didn't make. The shipping address was wrong, and the panic set in immediately.
Seconds later, my phone buzzed with an email from my credit card company denying a suspicious transaction.
Then, the chaos started.
Suddenly, my inbox was flooded. In the span of a few minutes, I received over 50 "Subscription Confirmation" emails from legitimate websites like The Washington Post, newsletters, and marketing lists I never signed up for. My phone wouldn't stop buzzing.
If I hadn’t known better, I would have panicked and started mass-deleting emails to clean up the mess—and that is exactly what the attackers wanted me to do.
The Tactic: "Subscription Bombing" This technique is called Subscription Bombing (or Distributed Spam Distraction), and it is becoming a favorite tool for modern cybercriminals.
Here is how it works:
- The Crime: The criminal gets your credit card number or passwords and attempts a fraudulent transaction (in my case, a hardware purchase).
- The Distraction: They know your bank or vendor will send you an automated email alert (e.g., "Did you make this purchase?").
- The Smokescreen: To stop you from seeing that alert, they use automated bots to sign your email address up for hundreds of newsletters simultaneously.
- The Goal: They want to flood your inbox so the real security warning gets buried on "Page 2" or deleted accidentally while you are frantically trying to clean up your inbox.
Why This is Dangerous Most people see the flood of spam and assume that is the attack. They think, "Oh no, my email is hacked!" or "I'm being spammed!"
They spend 20 minutes unsubscribing or deleting emails. Meanwhile, the criminals are hoping you miss the single email from your bank asking you to confirm the fraudulent transfer or purchase.
What I Did (And What You Should Do) Because I recognized the tactic, I didn't click anything in the emails.
- I ignored the inbox chaos. I knew the spam was just noise.
- I checked my accounts separately. I didn't click the "Cancel Transaction" link in the Apple email. Instead, I called the number on the back of my credit card.
- I confirmed the fraud. The bank confirmed the attempt, and we canceled the card immediately.
The Takeaway for Your Business If your inbox suddenly explodes with newsletter sign-ups you didn't request, stop and look closer.
- Do not mass-delete. Scan the subject lines carefully. You are looking for one "needle" in the haystack: a bank transfer alert, a password reset notification, or a purchase receipt.
- Check your financials. Log in to your bank (or call them) immediately to check for pending transactions.
- Enable MFA. Ensure Multi-Factor Authentication is on for all your accounts. It is your last line of defense if they already have your password.
Stay safe, and don't let the smokescreen fool you.
