Spammer email (why PMs are disabled)

[Juice]

It is insane how much spamming is going on. For the first time, I got a PM. Here is a part of it:

"You have received a new private message from "TuXy" to your account on
"FORScan forum" with the following subject:

Urgent: $100,450.17 must be withdrawn within 90 minutes

You can view your new message by clicking on the following link:"

REALLY? How F'ing stupid do they think ppl are?
DIE TuXy, just DIE

[Zappaz]

I have also received this email. Didn't click the link. Visit this forum normally to see if other people are emailed.

[jscalf5]

I also received multiple of these pms. Still recovering them currently about 10 and counting. WTH happened that made the start PMing ppl I wonder?

[FORScan]

Unfortunately many of users that registered accounts on our forum before 2021 used simple passwords that are vulnerable to brute force attacks. So spammers hack such accounts and use them to send spam. Previously, they used the accounts to make posts on forum. But yesterday they used them to attack through PM, that was the first attack of this type on our forum. By this moment the following measures are implemented:

1. IP addresses of attackers are banned.
2. Hacked accounts are deleted. This should remove their PMs, but we are not 100% sure. If these PMs aren't removed, please remove it manually.
3. Private Messaging on our forum is disabled.