Fraudsters continue to use pandemic to prey on people’s fear

Fraud prevention service has highlighted some of the latest coronavirus scams and warned that the public need to stay vigilant of the ever-changing tactics that scammers are using to extract money and information.

Business owners have recently been targeted by emails purporting to be from the Chief Executive of HMRC. Under the heading ‘HM Revenue & Customs’, the email is asking for the bank account details of the recipient to assist them in making a claim through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. Cifas is advising business owners to be suspicious of texts, emails or calls purporting to be from the government offering financial help or tax refunds, and visit GOV.UK to check out how genuine schemes operate.

In addition, research has revealed a 600% rise in the number of phishing emails delivered worldwide using Coronavirus-related themes. The top phishing subject lines used by fraudsters are:

• CDC Health Alert Network: Coronavirus Outbreak Cases
• Test of the [company name] Emergency Notification System
• Revised Vacation & Sick Time Policy
• Please Read Important from Human Resources.

Cifas is reminding people to take a moment to stop and think before responding to requests for personal or financial information, even if they believe it is from their employer.

Amber Burridge, Head of Intelligence for Cifas, said “Fraudsters are always quick to spot new opportunities, and many are now using the coronavirus pandemic to prey on people’s fear and uncertainty to obtain money and personal information.”

“If you do get a request for money or information and you cannot confirm it is legitimate, then don’t be afraid to challenge it. My advice is to stay vigilant and remember that criminals are changing their tactics on an almost daily basis – so the scams you are seeing today probably won’t be the ones you’ll see tomorrow.”