Image by Montse González from Pixabay
According to this email, your photo has been successfully published on Google Photos. The email includes a link that supposedly opens a Google Photos album with the newly published image.
However, Google Photos did not send the notification and the link does not open an online photo album.
Instead, clicking the link opens one of several decidedly dodgy websites that claim that you can win prizes or get free products by providing your name and contact details.
However, if you proceed, your information will be shared with “prize sponsors” and third-party marketing companies. Thus, you will soon begin receiving marketing phone calls, emails, and text messages touting the benefits of a range of suspect products and services you most likely neither want nor need.
Some of the websites may also ask for your credit card details, supposedly so that you can pay for postage on a “free” offer or giveaway.
Any company that is willing to send out such fake emails as a means of promoting themselves should never be trusted with your personal and financial details.
Scam emails like this are common. Another very similar version, which also purports to be from Google, falsely claims that your files have been published on Google Drive. Again, links in the email open scam websites.
Alternative versions may be phishing scams designed to steal your email account login credentials.
If you receive one of these scam emails, just delete it.
A screenshot of the scam email:
Transcript:
Subject: Your photo has been successfully published
Google Photos
Your photo has been successfully published.2 albums, 4 photos
F.A.Q.View albums
© 2020 Google Photos Service.
