Gmail users warned as new feature brings risk of attack.<\/p>\n
NurPhoto via Getty Images <\/p>\n
Update, April 26, 2025: This story, originally published April 25, has been updated with information concerning Google alert impersonation attacks that target Gmail users and further advice to mitigate the Gmail encryption message threat to users of other email platforms. <\/p>\n
Love it or loathe it, with nearly 2 billion users, Google\u2019s Gmail platform cannot be ignored. That\u2019s certainly the case when it comes to hackers, scammers and cybercriminals of all types. They are drawn to the web-based email service like no other. All email platforms are targeted by criminals<\/a>, that\u2019s for sure, but Gmail has the biggest bullseye on its back courtesy of that user base. Sophisticated new Gmail threats are constantly being reported, while Google responds with security updates<\/a> to counter them. Some updates that have long been anticipated by eager users could, however, spread the risk of attack beyond just those folks using Gmail. That\u2019s the warning from one leading cybersecurity expert as Google introduces end-to-end encryption for Gmail<\/a>. Here\u2019s what you need to know.<\/p>\n ForbesGoogle Issues Emergency Chrome Security Update \u2014 Act NowBy Davey Winder<\/a><\/p>\n The Gmail Encryption Attack Threat Explained<\/p>\n Generally speaking, you would not talk about the addition of encryption to a platform as anything other than a blessing for those who value security and privacy. When Google announced<\/a> that it was bringing end-to-end encryption to all businesses, I was certainly excited, not least because it has been a long time coming. To coincide with the 21st birthday of Gmail, Google said it would be rolling out the ability for enterprise users \u201cto send E2EE messages to any user on any email inbox with just a few clicks.\u201d The process by which this encryption service works involves a kind of protective bubble that surrounds the email in question. So, what\u2019s the issue? Well, if you send such an encrypted email bubble to a Gmail user, then it gets automatically decrypted in their inbox, no problem there. If the recipient isn\u2019t a Gmail user, however, they are presented with an invite to view the email within a restricted version of Gmail, using a Google Workspace guest account.<\/p>\n As J\u00e9r\u00f4me Segura, the senior director of threat intelligence at Malwarebytes, told Wired<\/a>, \u201cusers might not yet be familiar with exactly what a legitimate invitation looks like, making them more susceptible to clicking on a fake one.\u201d<\/p>\n We already know how AI-powered phishing attacks are blurring the lines<\/a> between reality and risk, and you can be sure that scammers will be looking for the best way to create fake invitations within a convincing threat campaign to gain access to the potential victim\u2019s email account credentials.<\/p>\n ForbesGmail Hack \u2014 Google Warns Users Have 7 Days To ActBy Davey Winder<\/a><\/p>\n Google Impersonation Attacks Haunt Gmail Users<\/p>\n It\u2019s not just the addition of the end-to-end encryption feature that could enable malicious actors to attack email users while disguised as genuine Gmail communications. As I recently reported, Google impersonation is rife among those who would use trickery and guile to relieve you of your Gmail account credentials. What has become known as the Gmail Subpoena attack<\/a> employed trust in Google\u2019s own protections and platforms, sending a fake security alert from a genuine Google domain to bypass the strict DomainKeys Identified Mail authentication checks employed by Gmail. The email alert was sent from an absolutely legitimate \u201cno-reply@google.com\u201d address. What\u2019s more, Gmail even \u201chelpfully\u201d sorted it into the same conversation that contained other Google security alerts. The scam relied upon the apparent legitimacy of the email along with the sense of urgency and fear created by receiving notification that a supposed subpoena requiring Google to produce a copy of the Gmail account content had been served. The victim was advised that they could examine the subpoena itself or lodge a formal protest. The stinger being, of course, that doing either required them to follow the instructions given and that would lead them to fake Google support pages that, inevitably, would require an account security confirmation and ultimately, dear reader, account compromise.<\/p>\n Gmail spokesperson Ross Richendrfer told me that Google has now rolled out updated security measures to counter the techniques used by the Gmail Subpoena threat actor in these highly targeted attacks.<\/p>\n