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# How to Spot Phishing Scams: Fake Delivery Emails & Grubhub Case Study
- URL: https://libertystrikes.ie/how-to-spot-phishing-scams-fake-delivery-emails-grubhub-case-study/
- Published: 2026-08-13T14:18:51.000Z
- Updated: 2026-08-13T14:18:51.000Z
- Description: Learn how to spot a phishing scam using a real-world fake Grubhub delivery email. Discover the red flags, whitelisted domains, and what to do if you receive one.
- Author: Don Roíste
- Tags: Tech

---

With online food delivery being a daily routine, scammers are increasingly leveraging fake order confirmations to steal credentials and harvest active email addresses. We are going to break down a real-world phishing attempt targeting a user with a fake Grubhub delivery notification, highlighting the exact red flags you need to look out for.

## The Lure: A Fake Grubhub Delivery Email

Recently, a user received an email claiming to be a Grubhub order confirmation for "Luigi's Pizza". The email urged the recipient to track an order they never placed.

Here is the exact email that was received:

![Fake Grubhub Delivery Email](https://libertystrikes.ie/content/images/2026/08/image_6cf982.png)

At first glance, the scammers used the Grubhub logo and familiar brand colours to build trust. However, breaking down the email reveals a cheap spoof.

## Red Flags: How to Spot the Scam

### 1\. Unofficial and Spoofed Domains

The most critical indicator of this scam is the sender's email address. In this case, the email originated from:  
`no-reply@grubhubdeliveries.com`

While it contains the brand name, **this is not an official Grubhub domain**. Scammers use a tactic called "typosquatting" where they register lookalike domains by appending words like `deliveries`, `support`, or `login` to a legitimate brand name. Anyone can register a `.com` domain containing a company's name until it gets taken down for fraud.

**Always check the company's whitelisted domains.** Grubhub's official documentation explicitly lists all approved domains allowed to send email communications on their behalf. Their whitelisted domains are:

- `@grubhub.com`
- `@seamless.com`
- `@mandrillapp.com`
- `@mandrill.com`

The domain `grubhubdeliveries.com` is completely unauthorised and would fail standard email security checks like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC alignment for legitimate Grubhub servers.

### 2\. Dodgy Design and Poor Coding

This email is a blatant fake, and the design work is a complete giveaway.

- **Un-styled Fonts:** Genuine corporate email templates do not use raw, un-styled serif fonts for their core text, order numbers, and footer links.
- **Cheap Call to Action:** The "Track your order" button is a mess. It is just a default blue, underlined web link dumped into a basic orange border.
- **Overall Polish:** It is a cheap, poorly coded spoof template built to look legitimate only at a quick, panicked glance.

## What You Should Do

If an email like this lands in your inbox, here is exactly what you need to do:

1. **Do not click a single thing:** No links, no attachments, and definitely no "unsubscribe" buttons. Clicking anything just confirms to the scammers that your email address is active and monitored.
2. **Do not reply:** Engaging with the sender only flags you as a live target for more spam.
3. **Report it:** Do not just delete it. Hit the 'Report Spam' or 'Report Phishing' button in your email client. If you manage a corporate environment, report it directly to your provider (like Microsoft) as a phishing attempt. This feeds the telemetry straight into their threat intelligence, helping to block the campaign globally across filters like Exchange and Defender.
4. **Verify at the source:** If you are genuinely waiting on a delivery and get spooked, open a new tab, type the official website address directly into your browser, or open the actual mobile app to check your order status.