14 DAY TRIAL // A large number of fake emails purporting to come from Twitter and informing recipients about unread messages are used to spread links to rogue pharmacy websites.
According to security provider MX Lab, the rogue emails bear a subject of "Twitter - You have 1 unread message(s)" and have forged headers to appear as originating from a @postmaster.twitter.com address.
The body contains a link that is supposed to take users to their Twitter accounts, but instead directs them to a site selling male enhancement pills.
The website bears the branding of the so called "U.S. Drugs" rogue pharmacy operation, which according to spamtrackers.eu, is a front for a credit card scam.
Most of the pills sold by "U.S. Drugs" websites can be acquired cheaper from legit sources and there is strong reason to believe that credit cards are being abused by criminals after purchase.
This rogue pharmacy operation is associated with Alex Polyakov, number three on Spamhaus' list of world's worst spammers.
Buying from rogue pharma sites, even if products are delivered, carries significant risks because there is no guarantee the drugs contain the right substances in correct amounts.
In this particular case, the spammers have abused a real Twitter email template to make the fake messages look as legitimate as possible.
This is a rather common technique that has been observed for other popular social media services like Facebook or LinkedIn as well.
The same method is also used to distribute malware, so users are strongly advised to exercise caution when dealing with links in emails, even if they appear to originate from trusted sources.
Browsing with an up-to-date antivirus solution capable of blocking Web-based attacks running on the computer is a must to ensure safety in the current threat landscape.