# PhishDestroy threat dossier — thestudyxcel.com ================================================================ Fetched: 2026-06-30 14:08:13 UTC Canonical: https://phishdestroy.io/domain/thestudyxcel.com/ ## VERDICT ---------------------------------------------------------------- TAKEN DOWN (neutralised) Composite threat score: 67/100 (PhishDestroy scoring — see methodology below) Scam classification: Credential Phishing ## DETECTION EVIDENCE ---------------------------------------------------------------- VirusTotal: 2/91 security vendors flagged this domain Flagging vendors: Fortinet, Gridinsoft AlienVault OTX: 2 pulses (threat-intel feed mentions) Public blocklists: listed on 1 independent blocklist ## INFRASTRUCTURE ---------------------------------------------------------------- IP address: 188.114.97.3 (US, San Francisco) ASN: AS13335 Cloudflare, Inc. Hosting org: AS13335 Cloudflare, Inc. Registrar: NICENIC INTERNATIONAL GROUP CO., LIMITED !!! REGISTRAR INTEGRITY ALERT — NiceNIC !!! NiceNIC International: over 90% of its registered domains are associated with illegal content; documented systematic abuse-report non-response. Primary sources: https://phishdestroy.io/nicenic-real https://phishdestroy.io/nicenic-verdict Nameservers: amir.ns.cloudflare.com, veronica.ns.cloudflare.com Registered: 2026-06-22 Expires: 2027-06-22 Page title: StudyXcel.com – Learn Better. Grow Smarter. Achieve More. HTTP response: 200 ## TLS CERTIFICATE ---------------------------------------------------------------- Issuer: Google Trust Services / WE1 Expires: 2026-09-20 Status: INVALID chain Fingerprint: 289344956549d51da2f36b7c72daca0f8ef084559eb4bb3973856afbc091ff14 ## ABUSE-REPORT HISTORY (evidence of registrar non-response) ---------------------------------------------------------------- Status: CLOSED — no report required. This domain was neutralised before the abuse-report cycle could be dispatched — either the hosting provider / registrar suspended it on their own, the DNS went dead, or the operator abandoned the infrastructure. PhishDestroy keeps the evidence bundle on file for audit but no formal notice was sent. ## TIMELINE ---------------------------------------------------------------- Domain registered: 2026-06-22 (per WHOIS / CT — may reflect a renewal or transfer date, not first-ever registration) First detected: 2026-06-28 14:15:10 UTC (by PhishDestroy tracker) Last verified: 2026-06-30 12:20:35 UTC Neutralised: 2026-06-29 00:03:03 UTC Current status: taken down (registrar suspended or DNS dead) ## EXTERNAL CORROBORATION (third-party evidence) ---------------------------------------------------------------- URLScan.io: https://urlscan.io/result/019f0e26-7269-7525-9084-b0185dd154fe/ Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/*/thestudyxcel.com crt.sh CT logs: https://crt.sh/?q=%25.thestudyxcel.com Google transparency: https://transparencyreport.google.com/safe-browsing/search?url=thestudyxcel.com AlienVault OTX: https://otx.alienvault.com/indicator/domain/thestudyxcel.com URLhaus: https://urlhaus.abuse.ch/host/thestudyxcel.com/ ## ANALYST NARRATIVE ---------------------------------------------------------------- [Generated: 2026-06-28 15:01:11 UTC — narrative may predate facts above. Treat fields in TIMELINE / DETECTION EVIDENCE / INFRASTRUCTURE as authoritative if they differ from the prose below.] This domain is flagged as a potential credential harvesting phishing site targeting users through educational-themed deception. The site presents itself as a legitimate learning platform with the page title 'StudyXcel.com – Learn Better. Grow Smarter. Achieve More,' a common tactic to lower user suspicion. Such infrastructure typically mimics trusted services to capture login credentials, payment details, or personal information from unsuspecting visitors, particularly students or professionals seeking educational resources. Analysis indicates the domain was registered on June 22, 2026, through NICENIC INTERNATIONAL GROUP CO., LIMITED, a registrar frequently observed in phishing campaigns. Despite its recent creation, the domain resolves to the IP address 188.114.97.3 and remains undetected by VirusTotal, with 0 out of 95 security vendors flagging it as malicious. However, AlienVault OTX has recorded the domain in two threat intelligence pulses, suggesting prior association with malicious activity. The discrepancy between detection systems highlights the evolving nature of phishing infrastructure, where new domains often evade automated detection initially. Users who have visited thestudyxcel.com or entered credentials on the site should take immediate action. First, revoke any passwords or sensitive information submitted to the domain, particularly if reused across other platforms. Second, monitor financial accounts and credit reports for unauthorized activity, as phishing sites often harvest data for identity theft or fraud. Third, report the domain to local cybersecurity authorities or platforms like Google Safe Browsing to prevent further victimization. Organizations should block the domain and IP address (188.114.97.3) at the network level to mitigate risk to employees or customers. ## EVIDENCE HASHES ---------------------------------------------------------------- Favicon MD5: d3cda2784f343924fd236ffd2377f71d TLS cert SHA-256: 289344956549d51da2f36b7c72daca0f8ef084559eb4bb3973856afbc091ff14 ## SCORING METHODOLOGY ---------------------------------------------------------------- Composite score is NOT derived from VirusTotal alone. PhishDestroy aggregates: - VirusTotal positive ratio - Public blocklist consensus (MetaMask, ScamSniffer, OpenPhish, PhishTank, URLhaus, CryptoFirewall, SEAL, Polkadot, Enkrypt, Phishunt, DiscordPhishing, PhishingDB) - Cloaking detection (HTTP 666 or rendering delta between bot and real visitor) - DNS-filter consensus (Quad9, CleanBrowsing, NextDNS, AdGuard, Cloudflare, etc.) - AlienVault OTX pulses + Cloudflare Radar + Google Safe Browsing - URLScan / URLQuery verdicts - Brand-impersonation heuristics (DOM analysis of forms, logos, wording) - Known phishing-kit fingerprinting (favicon hash, JS obfuscation signatures) - Wallet-drainer family classification (Angel, MS, Rainbow, Pink, Inferno, ...) - Free-TLS vs paid-cert ratio (throwaway infrastructure signal) - Registrar/hosting abuse history (this registrar's track record) - Human researcher sign-off (volunteer takedown team) A domain present in our database is ALREADY flagged. A low VT count by itself does NOT mean the domain is safe — new scam domains routinely show 0/95 VT for their first 7–30 days while actively draining wallets. Always cross-reference the composite score and the individual indicators above, not just VT. ## CORRECTIONS / APPEALS ---------------------------------------------------------------- Full HTML report: https://phishdestroy.io/domain/thestudyxcel.com/ JSON API: https://api.destroy.tools/v1/check?domain=thestudyxcel.com Appeal a flag: https://phishdestroy.io/appeals/ (responded to within 48 hours, FP rate <0.01%) Submit a report: https://t.me/PhishDestroy_bot About PhishDestroy: volunteer-driven open-source threat-intelligence platform. Tracked: 172,677 domains (12,746 alive under monitoring, 159,341 confirmed takedowns/dead). Site: https://phishdestroy.io