How to do if I get email about the account claiming to be from Apple

apple-id

For about a week now I keep getting an SMS giving me an Apple ID verification code. It will do it a couple of times and then a phone call. Today I received this email:

Subject: Verify your Apple ID before We closed Your account.

Dear Apple User,

We unable verify your account informations in order to continue using your Apple.
This Apple ID has been locked for security reasons.
You must unlock your account to continue using your Apple ID.

To read your secure message by opening the attachment (PDF).
You will be prompted to open (view) the file or save (download) it to your computer.

For best result, Save the file first, then open it on a web browser.

Your account will be disabled if we didn't receive any response from you in more than twenty four hours

Sincerly
Apple Support

The whole thing sounds fishy to me. Or phishing to me.

What I am needing to know is, is this a real email from them or no? It just seems off.

Best Answer

Apple has a support page regarding phishing attempts, see Identify and report phishing emails and other suspicious messages. Taken from there:

These are common signs of a possible phishing attempt:

  • The sender’s email address doesn’t match the name of the company that it claims to be from.
  • The message was sent to an email address or phone number that's different from the one that you gave that company.
  • A link appears to be legitimate but takes you to a website whose URL doesn’t match the address of the company’s website.
  • The message starts with a generic greeting, like “Dear valued customer” — most legitimate companies will include your name in their messages to you.
  • The message looks significantly different from other messages that you’ve received from the company.
  • The message requests personal information, like a credit card number or account password.
  • The message is unsolicited and contains an attachment.

It also recommends to report such messages to Apple by using "Forward As Attachment" within Mail and then send it to reportphishing@apple.com.

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