Thriving Scams amid Covid-19 Pandemic

Pretending to be the IRS for selling fake vaccines, scammers have kicked in scammers and hackers are playing with people's emotions to cash in the opportunity since the coronavirus pandemic began.

Online scams have risen during the past few months that Google decided to take action. On Thursday, the search giant launched a new website called Scam Spotter to address the problem.

Scam Spotter urges users to follow three simple rules to avoid getting scammed online: "Slow it down," "Spot Check," and "Stop! Don't send." The steps highlight some common tricks fraudsters use, such as creating a false sense of urgency so you don’t think about what they’re asking you to do.

Steve Tcherchian Chief Information Security Officer at XYPRO "Criminals love panic and chaos, and they’ll use every opportunity to exploit the situation. As we adapt and try to be productive while juggling kids and multiple spouses working from home, security can sometimes be the last thing on our minds."

Identity thieves are preying on the fears of individuals around the world as coverage regarding the novel coronavirus pandemic, or COVID-19, increases.

After the deadly virus officially declared a pandemic, we witnessed that it has evoked fear in the heart of people worldwide and that is why people are panic buying which has resulted in the destruction of stock market and financial market. To add the fuel to the fire, cybercriminals are pretending to be representatives of World Health Organizations (WHO) to steal your personal information and your money, security experts say.

Darren Deslatte, Vulnerability Operations Leader at Entrust Solutions "Coronavirus-related scams range from malicious apps purporting to track the spread of COVID-19, to phishing emails from fake charities pretending they donate PPE to hospitals. "

As the health crisis continues, Scarpino said the FBI and other law enforcement agencies are seeing more scams related to federal coronavirus stimulus payments as well as bogus COVID-19-related products and treatments for sale, charities and fraudulent investment and job opportunities.

Here are a few coronavirus-specific scams to look out for:

Scams offering COVID-19 Cure through Vaccines:

The FTC warned  about a significantly increasing number of scams related to vaccines, test kits, treatments or cure, and air filter systems developed to remove COVID-19 from the recirculated air in your home. At this time, there is neither a vaccine nor a cure for this virus. If you receive a phone call, email, text message, or letter with claims to sell you any of these items–it’s a scam.

Similarly, these fraudulent are sending out emails pretending to be WHO representatives and urging people “to help fund the vaccine for children in China” when there is no vaccine developed to cure coronavirus as of yet.

Fake CDC Phishing Email

An email pretending to be from the CDC, warning of new outbreaks of coronavirus in your area, is using links disguised as legitimate CDC sites to trick people into clicking, potentially unleashing malware, spyware, or taking them to a spoofed website and requesting personal or sensitive information.

Offering Free Money or Product Text Message Scams during COVID-19

These text messages are from fraudsters offering free phones or money to help people during the coronavirus outbreak. Keep in mind, these fraudsters ask for 1000$ beforehand to “pre-approve” you for coronavirus aid. Please make sure to not fall for any of these claims as they are relying on financial fear to play off the U.S. federal government COVID-19 economic stimulus package, officially known as the “Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act” or CARES Act, as a way to swindle you out of your own money and financial information.

Another way these fraudsters are trying to scam is through SMS or Text messages, also known as SMS phishing, or smishing, that allows scammers to hack into your phone and granting them access to all of your personal information stored within your device.

OxyBreath PRO Face-Mask Phishing Emails:

According to Google Trends, the search volume for ‘hand sanitizer’ and ‘face masks’ have increased suddenly and no doubt marks and hand sanitizer prices have touched sky limits. Amazon is already warning third-party sellers on its Marketplace platform against excessive price hikes to face masks amid the coronavirus outbreak. According to Sky News, fraudulent face mask sellers swindled people in the UK out of £800,000 (US$1 million) in February alone.

Braden Perry from Kennyhertz Perry, LLC says "There will be many types of scams (testing, treatment supply, provider, charity, and investment, to name a few), and the best way to combat is through proper due diligence and using critical judgments and decisions in your business processes surrounding COVID-19"

As facemasks and hand sanitizers are out of order and have a very limited supply, make sure to only purchase from recognized websites and verified sellers to avoid getting your sensitive information leaked.

Fake World Health Organization Phishing Email Pretending to be WHO Representatives

World Health Organization (WHO) is an authentic source of information and that is why these fraudsters are pretending to be their representatives and sending out these scam email campaigns with malicious attachments in order to get the victims to click on malicious links.

These email attachments can launch an attack on your computer, including dangerous malware, ransomware, or other trojan software designed to steal information or destroy data.

Holly Andrews, Managing Director at KisBridgingLoans says "Fraudsters are pretending to be representatives from reliable sources such as The World Health Organisation (WHO) or The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and are asking people to hand over sensitive data or to make a payment in exchange for medical advice, PPE, or COVID-19 testing kits"

Do's and Don'ts to Avoid Getting Scammed

Here are some of the actionable tips to defend yourself and your family against these variety of scams and vulnerabilities, and from the fallout of identity theft:

• Don't click on links or communication which appear to direct you to COVID-19 news, health-related or other websites you are not familiar with. You never know what these links can do to your computer or device.

• Only refer to trusted sources of information. For medical, trust your doctor, cdc.gov and the Westchester County Health Department. For financial information, refer to ftc.gov or irs.gov. When you receive emails from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) or experts, always check out the source and validate the email before opening the link.

• Don't give money to anyone soliciting donations, fraudulent charities or crowdfunding campaigns relating to COVID-19 assistance, unless you know it's a trusted charity. (Check Charity Navigator.)

• Organizations should adopt robust tools such as a VPN to enhance employee’s online presence and give them the added capability of secure remote access from any corner of the globe.

• Don't speak to anyone who claims to be a representative from national health organizations, such as the CDC or WHO offering to help obtain COVID-19 stimulus funds.

• There currently are no vaccines, pills, or other prescription or over-the-counter products available to cure or treat Coronavirus disease. Please ignore all online offers for vaccinations.

• Don't pay anyone who says they can get you a job — not money or in gift cards and don’t let anyone rush you into making a donation. If someone wants donations in cash, by gift card, or by wiring money, don’t do it.