Norwegian Cruise Passengers Get Scam Emails That Suspiciously Know Their Real Booking Details
A family getting ready for a Norwegian Cruise Line vacation reportedly received six emails threatening to cancel their trip unless they completed another verification step. The messages even had the names of their children, their reservation number, and the amount they’d paid for the cruise.
The passenger posted about the emails on Reddit on October 10, just two days before the family was supposed to leave on Norwegian Getaway. Their cruise was already paid for in full, but the emails claimed they could still lose the reservation.
Other passengers started sharing similar messages over the weekend. One person booked on Norwegian Encore said the scammers knew their cabin number, sailing dates, booking number, and how much they’d paid.
Norwegian Cruise Line has since issued a warning about the emails, which it confirmed were not from the company. The cruise line said it was investigating the situation, although it hasn’t explained where the booking information came from.
Some Passengers Had Already Checked In
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One first-time cruiser posted a screenshot of an email telling them their reservation could be canceled. They had already checked in and could see their electronic documents in Norwegian’s app, so they went to Reddit to ask whether the message was real.
The passenger had booked directly with Norwegian and admitted that having their real reservation information in the email had thrown them off. Another guest was leaving on November 1 and got a suspicious credit card verification email on the same day check-in opened for their cruise.
In a Reddit discussion, they said the real Norwegian check-in reminder arrived shortly afterward. The fake email had no obvious spelling mistakes or bad graphics, according to the passenger. The sender’s address was from herdr.io, however, rather than Norwegian.
One Passenger Used Different Emails for Norwegian and Their Travel Agency
The Norwegian Encore passenger had booked through Vacations To Go, using a different email address than the one attached to their Norwegian account. The fake check-in notice went to the address they used for Norwegian.
It came from [email protected], and the supposed guest portal wasn’t on Norwegian’s website. The passenger didn’t enter any payment information or passwords and reported the email to Norwegian’s privacy and security team.
Someone booked on Norwegian Epic for October 18 shared another version of the scam that asked them to verify their credit card within 24 hours. The first messages promised there would be no extra charges, but the last one was marked “Final Notice” and threatened to cancel the reservation immediately.
Norwegian Cruise Line is Investigating
Norwegian posted an advisory on its website on October 12, saying it was aware of fraudulent emails being sent to guests. The company told passengers not to click any links, reply to the messages, or share personal and payment information.
Legitimate Norwegian emails come from @ncl.com, @e.ncl.com or @nclcorp.com. Anyone concerned about their reservation can contact their travel advisor or find Norwegian’s phone numbers on its official contact page.
The cruise line hasn’t said how the people sending the emails obtained the passengers’ information. Norwegian has not confirmed that a data breach occurred.
