A unique type of phishing attack has been identified

Fake Power BI invites are a type of phishing or social engineering attack where attackers impersonate legitimate Microsoft Power BI (or Microsoft 365) notifications to trick users into clicking malicious links, opening attachments, or providing credentials. These fake invites often mimic real Power BI sharing emails to gain trust and bypass suspicion.

What Do Fake Power BI Invites Look Like?

- Sender: A spoofed or compromised Microsoft 365/Power BI account.

- Subject: “You’ve been granted access to a Power BI report” or similar.

- Body: May include realistic Microsoft branding and a link to “View Report.”

Links: Lead to:

- A phishing site that mimics the Microsoft login page

- A malware dropper (.zip, .html, etc.)

- A legitimate-looking shared dashboard that contains malicious content

Who Is Targeted?

- Employees at all levels, especially those in finance, IT, or executive roles.

- Organizations using Microsoft 365 services (even if not actively using Power BI).

- Government or enterprise networks with access controls.

Risks of Falling for a Fake Invite

- Credential Theft

- Victims enter Microsoft 365 credentials on a fake login page.

- Malware Infection

- Clicking the invite link downloads malware (keyloggers, ransomware, remote access tools).

- Business Email Compromise (BEC)

Once credentials are stolen, attackers can:

- Access internal email

- Impersonate users

- Move laterally in the organization

- Data Exfiltration

- If access is granted, attackers may view or steal sensitive reports and dashboards.

Reputation and Compliance Impact

A breach may result in:

- Regulatory fines (e.g., HIPAA, GDPR, CMMC)

- Loss of trust

- Operational disruption

How to Protect Yourself

- Verify Unexpected Invites: Confirm with the sender out-of-band (e.g., phone, Teams).

- Hover Before You Click: Check where the link goes (e.g., should be something like app.powerbi.com/...).

- Use MFA: Multi-factor authentication helps mitigate credential theft.

- Report Suspicious Emails: Use the phishing report feature in Outlook or your security tool.

- Security Awareness Training: Ensure users can recognize phishing tactics.

- Block .html Attachments: Many fake invites include dangerous HTML attachments.

Please reach our if you’d like to learn more about how Cloud Security Solutions can help.

Cloud Security Solutions
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