COVID-19 Scams and Fraud Prevention

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is stepping up its fight against coronavirus-related scams. The agency said it has identified and taken action against 30 more companies that have peddled scam COVID-19 cures, treatments, and products.

Regulators sent letters to sellers that gave them 48 hours to notify the FTC of the specific actions they have taken to address its concerns. If they failed to correct the allegations, the companies were looking at a possible lawsuit under the 2020 COVID-19 Consumer Protection Act. 

That’s bad news for the companies. The good news for consumers is that every single letter recipient has stopped making alleged false or deceptive claims.

No evidence for “cures” or “treatments”

The companies involved were peddling anything and everything they thought might snare them a victim. There were chiropractic adjustments, exercise sessions, nasal mists and rinses, vitamins, supplements, and extracts. 

On the surface, the companies looked legit, operating under names like Family First Medical Center and NeilMed Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Unfortunately, none of them could offer any evidence that their products worked against the coronavirus -- and evidence is required by law.

One of the providers that the FTC felt crossed the line -- the Texas Center Wellness -- even went as far as trying to align itself with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The FTC objected to language in the center’s online pitch that said it was “issuing a supplementary preventative action to the CDC’s suggestions.” 

Don’t take the bait

As you can see, scammers can pretend to be anyone they want, and that makes things difficult for innocent consumers who believe a company is accredited just because there’s a “doctor” or a “medical center” attached to its name.

The FTC says consumers need to think realistically about the offers and pitches they see. When it comes to fighting COVID-19 and spotting unsupported treatment claims, the agency suggests two considerations:

• When there’s a medical breakthrough to treat, prevent, or cure a disease, you’re not going to hear about it for the first time through an ad or sales pitch.

• Always talk with your doctor or health care professional before you try any product claiming to treat, prevent, or cure COVID-19.

More than anything else, the FTC says consumers should make the CDC and the FDA their first stops for the most up-to-date information about COVID-19 and available vaccines.

The COVID-19 vaccination campaign is well underway, and 2.7 million shots are being administered each day in the U.S. Those who have already been vaccinated know that getting the jab is free -- but that hasn’t stopped scammers from trying to convince unvaccinated people otherwise. 

Now, the FTC and National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) have teamed up to remind people that COVID-19 vaccines shouldn’t cost anything. 

“No matter what anyone tells you, you can’t buy COVID-19 vaccines online and there’s no out-of-pocket cost to get the shots,” the groups said in a statement.

Consumers don’t need to pay anything for the vaccine at any time during the process -- not before, during, or after the appointment. 

“If you’re insured, the vaccination site might bill your insurance company for an administration fee,” the FTC said. “If you’re not insured, there’s a fund set up with the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA — part of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) where sites can recover their administrative costs. Either way, though, they’re not supposed to bill you or charge a co-pay.” 

Avoiding a scam

Here are some more tips from the FTC to help consumers avoid falling victim to a vaccine-related scam:

• Ignore ads or posts claiming you can buy the vaccine. Any social media post, online ad, or phone call offering you the opportunity to buy a COVID-19 vaccine is bogus. “You can’t buy it — anywhere. The vaccine is only available at federal- and state-approved locations,” the FTC said.

• Never pay to sign up for the vaccine. Any offer to put you on a list in exchange for a payment, make an appointment for you, or reserve a spot in line should be disregarded as a scam. 

• Don’t share sensitive information with people you don’t know. Personal, financial, or health information should never be shared with people you don’t know. “No one from a vaccine distribution site, health care provider’s office, pharmacy, or health care payer, like a private insurance company or Medicare, will call, text, or email you asking for your credit card or bank account number to sign you up to get the vaccine,” the FTC said. 

• Don’t post your vaccination card to social media. After getting a COVID-19 vaccine, refrain from posting a photo of it on social media. The card contains personal information that could be used by a scammer looking to steal your identity. 

The FTC recommends only going to trusted sources for information regarding coronavirus vaccines. Consumers can check with their state or local health department to learn when and how to get the COVID-19 vaccine, or they can talk with their health care provider or pharmacist. 

Those who lost a loved one to COVID-19 should be aware that scammers are out there offering to “help” people register for assistance with funeral expenses.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency said it has received reports of bad actors posing as FEMA representatives saying they can offer financial assistance to people with loved ones who died of COVID-19. 

In an advisory, the Federal Trade Commission said consumers should know that FEMA does things differently than scammers. Here are a few red flags that could indicate a scam, according to the FTC: 

• Being contacted out of the blue. FEMA won’t contact you until you have called the agency or have applied for assistance. The FTC advises consumers never to give their own or their deceased loved one’s personal or financial information to anyone who contacts them out of the blue. 

• Being asked to pay anything. Real federal employees won’t ask you to pay anything in order to receive financial assistance with funeral expenses. 

• Being asked to give personal information in an insecure way. The government won’t call, text, email, or contact you on social media and ask for your Social Security number, bank account information, or credit card number. 

Financial assistance is available 

Consumers in need of financial assistance with funeral expenses because of COVID-19 should know that there is a legitimate government relief program that can help. 

FEMA’s Funeral Assistance program, which just began yesterday, will pay up to $9,000 for funeral expenses that people have paid since January 20, 2020, for loved ones who died of the virus. 

“Survivors can apply for benefits by contacting the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) at 844-684-6333,” the FTC stated. “The program is open to American citizens, nationals of U.S. territories, and non-citizens legally admitted to the United States, regardless of income.” 

Those who apply will need to be prepared to show certain documents, including receipts for your expenses and a death certificate that says the death happened in the United States or its territories and was likely caused by COVID-19.

The concept of a “vaccine passport,” a digital record showing you have been vaccinated against COVID-19, is currently a hot topic of discussion. Some people think it’s a good idea, while others don’t.

However, scammers love the idea because it gives them one more way to mislead, frighten, pressure, and cajole consumers into revealing sensitive personal information or purchasing worthless products.

The Better Business Bureau warns that these scams are coming. The organization says emails or popups offering free downloads of an “official” U.S. government vaccine passport app should be disregarded as scams. At the moment, the federal government has no plans to create a national vaccine passport. Anything presented as such is a scam.

That’s not to say that there won’t be vaccine passports offered by other entities. New York is the first state to roll out an app that displays the user’s vaccination status. Private companies may also develop these types of apps.

Be careful

Consumers need to be careful about downloading these programs and are advised to research any offering to ensure they're dealing with a legitimate enterprise. The companies developing the passport apps hope the technology will allow industries – such as travel and events – to return to normal while minimizing the spread of COVID-19.

"It's really just digitizing a little piece of paper that has your vaccine information on it," Sharon Pinkerton, senior vice president of policy at airline trade group Airlines for America, told NPR.

In fact, people who have been vaccinated have a card proving that fact. Taking a picture of the card and leaving it on your smartphone might be all the proof you need of your vaccination status.

Go directly to the source

If you’re booked on an airline flight or attending an event, the BBB suggests checking with the company directly about whether proof of vaccination is needed.

“As with all things related to COVID-19, policies are frequently changing,” the BBB said in an advisory. “Be sure to check with your airline, sports team, event venue, etc. beforehand to get the latest details.”

If you receive an invitation to download a COVID-19 vaccine passport app, make sure it is legitimate before entering any personal information. Scammers are very creative, so be skeptical of apps that ask for your Medicare ID number, Social Security number, health plan information, or banking information.

One more thing: Don't post your vaccine card on social media. The card has your full name and date of birth, two pieces of information scammers can use to begin stealing your identity.

Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) has sent out a warning about a new vaccine-related scam. The hustle targets vulnerable consumers by enticing them with gifts and cash in exchange for taking a fraudulent post-vaccination survey.

The dangerous reality behind these surveys is that scammers are unlawfully capturing consumers’ personal information and, in some cases, stealing money.

“Fraudulent schemes like this emphasize the need to remain vigilant of those trying to profit from the most vulnerable in the midst of a pandemic,” said Steve Francis, director of the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (IPR). “HSI has been at the forefront of the government’s investigative response to COVID-19 related crime since the onset of the pandemic and will remain a leader in the fight to prevent fraudulent activity under the guise of protecting the health and safety of our population.”

IPR and HSI are taking this scam so seriously that they’ve brought in the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the leading manufacturers of COVID-19 vaccines to investigate all reports of these fraudulent surveys.

How the scam works

As of April 1, 2021, there are no post-vaccine surveys being conducted by any of the vaccine manufacturers -- not Pfizer, not Moderna, and not Johnson & Johnson. HSI reminds consumers that these companies would never request an advance payment for shipping or any other expense.

If something resembling a survey finds its way into your email or messages, here are the red flags you should look out for:

1. The surveys are sent via email and/or text message.

2. Inside the message is an offer of a gift for filling out the survey. The consumer can choose from various free prizes, such as an iPad Pro. 

3. The messages say the recipient only needs to pay for shipping and handling fees to receive their prize. 

4. Then, the victims are asked to provide their credit card information and are charged for those shipping and handling fees.

If a victim falls for that final step, they’re essentially trapped. They will never receive the promised prize, and the scammers have the victim’s personally identifiable information (PII), which they can use in various ways to enrich themselves and access other accounts.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) also weighed in on the situation. It said consumers should refrain from clicking on any links, opening attachments, or calling a provided phone number in an email or text. If you want to call the company that supposedly sent the message, the FTC says you should look up its phone number online.

If you do fall prey

If you become a victim of these post-vaccine survey scams, the agencies suggest you immediately take the following steps:

• Report the activity to the online payment service used for the financial transaction. (e.g. your credit card company or bank if you used a debit card.)

• Contact your bank or financial institution if you discover any fraudulent or suspicious activity in your account(s).

If you receive a text message or email claiming to be a COVID-19 vaccine survey and it contains a link or other contact information, you can help stop the spread of the scam by reporting the communication to the IPR Center at IPRCenter.gov. 

Consumers can also report suspected illicit criminal activity or fraudulent schemes related to the COVID-19 pandemic by emailing Covid19Fraud@dhs.gov.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is warning consumers that scammers are sending out emails posing as the agency’s Acting Chairwoman Rebecca Slaughter. 

In the emails, the scammers lie and say the FTC is sending people coronavirus relief money. The bad actors then request personal information from the email recipient, claiming that they need to know where to send the money. 

“The Acting Chairwoman didn’t email you,” the federal agency said in a release. “Scammers who spoofed her email did.”

FTC says it doesn’t ask for personal information

Although coronavirus stimulus payments are still going out, the FTC said it isn’t involved in that process. The Treasury Department and the IRS are the only two government agencies handling COVID-19 stimulus payments. 

Additionally, the FTC said it does not email, call, text, or message people on social media to ask for personal information such as banking information, date of birth, or social security number. 

Consumers should also be wary of unexpected emails asking for personal information since “scammers could use that information to rip you off,” the FTC said. 

The agency added that consumers who suspect they received an email from a scammer should report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Phishing emails can also be forwarded to the Anti-Phishing Working Group at reportphishing@apwg.org. Reporting these types of scams can help officials crack down on them.

Spring means warmer weather. Warmer weather means vacations. Vacations mean rentals. And rentals mean… scams?

Consumers looking to take a trip following a year of the pandemic can’t let the excitement of being out of COVID-19’s reach get ahead of their need to be vigilant about vacation rental scams. 

If you’re already searching for vacation rentals online, it’s likely you’re probably looking for something unique or very affordable. That’s the trap that scammers have set for consumers -- ads for vacation rentals that tell you what you want to see and get you to thinking, “Gee, that’s too good to pass up!” Unfortunately, behind many of those ads are scammers ready to take your money and leave you without a roof over your head once you get to your vacation site.

Exercise caution

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC)’s golden rule when you’re looking for a rental is to stay skeptical and look out for red flags. The agency says some tip-offs to a scam may include:

Altered ads: Scammers have been known to hijack an honest-to-goodness real rental or real estate listing by simply changing the email address or other contact information and placing the modified ad on another site. They might even go as far as using the name of the person who posted the original ad in their altered, fake one. In other cases, scammers have been known to hijack the email accounts of property owners on reputable vacation rental websites such as VRBO.

Consumers should research both the owner and the listing, as well as reviews from other renters, to avoid falling into this trap. If you find the same ad listed under a different name, that’s a tell-tale clue that it may be a scam. 

Phantom rentals: Some rip-off artists make up listings for places that aren’t for rent or, worse, don’t even exist. The scammers then try to lure you in with the come-on of a low rental price or great amenities -- maybe a hot tub, daily maid service, or a free happy hour. The FTC says the scammer’s goal is to get your money before you find out the truth.

Georgia’s Attorney General offers another good way to search for phantom rentals: Google Maps. “Consider checking the location and neighborhood through Google Earth or Google Street View to get a sense of whether you would feel safe and comfortable staying there,” said Attorney General Chris Carr in his forewarning of vacation rental scams.

Another surefire search practice is doing an online search of the rental company. Enter its name plus words like “review,” “complaint,” or “scam.” If you find bad reviews, you may want to look elsewhere.

The signs of a scam

When you’re online looking for the perfect vacation rental, it might be smart to keep a list of these other red flags beside your computer: 

You’re asked to wire money or give a renter credit card information: Stop right there if this happens because this is the surest sign of a scam. “There’s never a good reason to wire money to pay a security deposit, application fee, first month’s rent, or vacation rental fee. That’s true even if they send you a contract first. Wiring money is the same as sending cash — once you send it, you have no way to get it back,” the FTC warns.

You’re asked for a security deposit or first month’s rent: That’s a normal course of business once you’ve signed a lease or met the agent in person, but if you haven’t, then it’s a bad idea. Two things to remember: 

• If the “rental agent” gets pushy about a deposit before you’ve signed a lease, beware; and

• If you can’t visit a rental in person, the FTC suggests you find someone you trust who can do that for you and confirm that the listing is honest. 

They say they’re out of the country: The FTC considers this a huge red flag. “If they say they have a plan to get the keys into your hands. It might involve a lawyer or an ‘agent’ working on their behalf. Some scammers even create fake keys,” the agency said.

“Don’t send money to them overseas. If you can’t meet in person, see the apartment, or sign a lease before you pay, keep looking. What if the rental itself is overseas? Paying with a credit card or through a reputable vacation rental website with its own payment system are your safest bets.”

The “international” thing came up several times in ConsumerAffairs research on vacation scams. One interesting thing to watch out for are the timestamps of the emails/messages that the rental agent sends. On the Community section of Airbnb, one person noted the disparity in times in their communication with a property owner. The owner claimed to be in Madrid, Spain, but all of the email timestamps appeared to be U.S. Eastern Time -- a five-hour difference.

The vaccinations of millions of Americans against the coronavirus (COVID-19) made this past weekend a huge one for travel. Government data shows that Friday was the biggest day for air travel in more than one year.

But while travelers may have less to fear from the virus, the Better Business Bureau (BBB) warns that they face increasing threats from scammers. Specifically, criminals are creating websites that appear to be the ones that frequent travelers use to sign up for expedited airline boarding.

These phony websites mimic those of Trusted Traveler programs, such as TSA precheck or Global Entry in the United States and NEXUS in Canada. According to the latest BBB Scam Tracker reports, scammers are using these websites to gain access to consumers’ personal information and, in some cases, take their money.

The scam works because so many people need to renew their participation in these programs, which have been largely unused for the last 12 months. To do that, most people go to their favorite search engine to find the program’s website.

Fake sites show up with the real ones

Included in the search queue are the new sites that scammers have created. The official site is undoubtedly included in the list, but it may not be at the top. If you click the link for one of the bogus sites, you could become a victim.

According to the BBB, these sites may charge you the cost of the application fee, plus a large service fee. Worse still, you’ll have to fill out a form that contains sensitive, personal information that may include your full name, passport number, and home address.

“When I clicked on the link, it appeared to be an official TSA Precheck site,” one victim posted on BBB’s Scam Tracker site. “This company asked for all the information as I would expect to provide in the process… including your full name, passport number, and home address. Then, you are prompted to pay $140, making it seem I was paying for TSA fee.”

The BBB says people who end up on one of these scam sites not only lose money and reveal sensitive information that could result in identity theft, but they aren’t enrolled in any travel program, resulting in a rude surprise the next time they arrive at a crowded airport.

How to protect yourself

As long as search engines don’t screen the links that show up in searches to weed out scams, consumers have to remain vigilant and do the job themselves.

Don’t assume any company that appears in your search is legitimate. When looking for a federally-run Trusted Traveler program, look closely at the URL in your browser’s address field to make sure it is a secure link.

You can tell that a site is secure if the link starts with “https://” and includes a lock icon on the purchase page. In the United States, all government websites end in “.gov.” In Canada, government agency websites are under "gc.ca."

Fraudsters have decided to play on the lack of cohesive information on how and where to get vaccinated for COVID-19. 

Desperate Americans have been going everywhere from Google and Facebook to their local drugstore or grocery stores to try to find out where and how they can get vaccinated. Fraudsters have picked up on the confusion and are building out counterfeit websites posing as legitimate pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer and Moderna to try to snare some easy money for themselves.

“As little as $30 a dose”

In one example, Scamicide reported that a fake Moderna website was offering vaccines that people could buy for as little as $30 a dose. 

“Often the cost is more,” wrote Steve Weisman. “Sometimes you receive nothing except a lesson in how to lose your money. Other times you may actually receive something, but whatever you get is not a real vaccine that will not protect you from the coronavirus and could potentially be dangerous to your health.”

As of mid-February, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) investigators had analyzed close to 80,000 COVID-19-related domain names and confiscated approximately $33 million in illegal proceeds, according to a spokeswoman for the agency. One particular scammer tried to pull off a fast one by creating “mordernatx.com” -- not only adding an “r” to Moderna’s real website “modernatx.com” but even mimicking its look and feel.

Scammers are also upping their game when it comes to how they fleece their victims by using common digital payment methods like Zelle, PayPal, and Square. Early Warning Services LLC, the company behind Zelle, told the Wall Street Journal that even though it’s constantly on the lookout for transactions that violate its terms of service, consumers are advised to treat Zelle payments like cash and be aware of “too good to be true” offers. 

“We continue to invest in and bolster fraud-fighting resources by both increasing staffing and adopting new technology,” a representative for Square told the Journal.

Forewarned is forearmed

Scammers are working hard to lure you into their den of fake vaccines. They’re using what they know about search algorithms employed by Google, Bing, and other search engines so that their phony website appears close to the top of any vaccination-related search results.

“You expect that Google will only give you stuff that’s valid,” Douglas Schmidt, co-director of the Data Science Institute at Vanderbilt University, told the Wall Street Journal, adding that older populations who weren’t raised on the internet are especially vulnerable.

The smartest move for anyone wanting to learn about getting their coronavirus vaccination is to go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website. There, you’ll find a section titled “How do I get a Vaccine” that can give you all the details. 

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic brought about big changes for just about everyone, including scammers using robocalls to ensnare victims.

Robokiller’s annual Robocall Report for 2020 shows there was a dramatic drop in computer-generated calls from April to June as the pandemic caused businesses to close and people to shelter in place.

“The spam call decrease from January to April 2020 aligns with the quarantine and shelter-in-place orders of early COVID-19,” the authors write. “These shutdowns severely limited access to the technology needed for scammers to make large volumes of calls.” 

For the year, there were 6.7 billion fewer spam calls compared to 2019, but scammers were quick to adapt. After June, they switched to sending more spam texts. Spam texts, most of which were pitching scams or other fraudulent enterprises, totaled more than 55 billion last year, exceeding spam calls.

Robocalls made a late-year comeback

By the end of the summer, the report shows spam call volume returned to normal levels. The average between September and December was nearly 6 billion calls per month.

The top five scams identified by the report were:

• Social Security: 14 percent

• Vehicle Warranty: 12 percent

• Religious: 11 percent

• Vacation Offer: 10 percent

• Credit Card Offer: 9 percent

Social Security replaced 2019's top robocall scam category of credit card offers. The editors explain the shift by noting widespread economic uncertainty made consumers less likely to take on credit card debt. Instead, they were more receptive to pitches that had to do with government programs.

Text messages apparently were just as effective as phone calls. The combination of calls and texts resulted in increased losses per victim, the report shows. Last year, 31 percent of consumers reporting fraud said they were contacted via phone call, and 27 percent reported they were contacted via text.

There were 2.2 million fraud reports that claimed $3.3 billion in losses. Consumers reported losing $319 million to scams relating to the COVID-19 pandemic.

More of the same in 2021

Robokiller warns consumers to be prepared for more of the same as scammers continue to adapt in 2021. Based on recent trends, the company predicts scammers will design smarter, more believable phone scams as they attempt to recover financial losses from 2020. 

Consumers can protect themselves by not engaging with bogus texts and calls. Call screening apps have gotten more sophisticated and effective at blocking spam calls. Make sure you have one that’s up to date.

When you see an unfamiliar number on your Caller ID, it’s best to not answer. If it is important, the caller will leave a voicemail. 

Remember that federal law prohibits most robocalls. If the recorded message is about your auto warranty or a credit card, the call is illegal and is a scam. Just hang up.

There are a limited number of robocall categories that are allowed. They include political organizations and doctors’ offices calling to confirm an appointment. It’s best to ignore the rest.

Homeland Security Investigations’ (HSI) -- the branch of U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in charge of monitoring organizations that try to exploit U.S. customs laws -- says that millions of counterfeit N95 masks made their way to the U.S. and were sold in at least five states.

Millions of the fake masks were purchased by hospitals, medical institutions, and government agencies. About two million of the masks actually made it to the frontline where they were used by health care workers in Washington State.

Cassie Sauer, president of the Washington State Hospital Association, said Washington State hospitals bought hundreds of thousands of the fraudulent masks, and the association itself bought another 300,000 for its members.

“Really good fakes”

Counterfeiting skills have reached expert levels over the years, and these masks were no exception. Many were stamped with the 3M logo and shipped in boxes that read, “Made in the U.S.A.,” despite not being made stateside or made by 3M according to the investigators.

The masks were “really good fakes,” Sauer said, noting that the fraudulent sellers had the design nuances down pat -- right down to a metal bar across the top and a foam strip across the nose.

“They look, they feel, they fit and they breathe like a 3M mask,” she said. But they were not made by 3M, she said, and officials don’t know enough about them to know how protective they might be.

Whether the masks were as effective as a real N95 made by 3M or not, it doesn’t really matter to HSI. “We don’t know if they meet the standards,” said Brian Weinhaus, a special agent with Homeland Security Investigations, told the New York Times.

Weinhaus said that companies claiming to be medical suppliers were likely buying the copycat N95s in China, then selling them as legitimate 3M masks. He told the Times that many of the masks include a reflective seal with the word “Peru,” which 3M said it does not use outside of Latin America. Weinhaus said HSI is doing its best to try to track the respirators back to the source and stop them at the border.

Public warned to stay vigilant

This is the second large counterfeit nab that HSI has made recently. In early December, more than 100,000 counterfeit 3M N95 surgical masks destined to be used by hospital workers were seized by ICE.

HSI is serious about protecting the legitimacy of coronavirus-related items like masks. Early in the pandemic, the agency launched a special operation – called Operation Stolen Promise – to protect U.S. consumers from the increasing and evolving threat posed by the pandemic. 

The operation involves various federal agencies and private sector partners, including Pfizer, 3M, and Amazon. The companies are all part of the manufacturer-to-consumer purchasing chain. Even the Alibaba Group -- a Chinese version of Amazon which was once on the list of the world’s most “notorious markets” for counterfeit goods -- signed up to do its part.

The operation has done a lot for consumers. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the agency sinkholed 11,000+ COVID-19 domains and made hundreds of arrests. Amazon alone stopped more than 6.5 million products that made inaccurate claims, and it removed over a million offers for suspected price gouging and referred the most flagrant offenders to federal and state law enforcement. 

Still, HSI is asking consumers to remain vigilant, mostly because the agency is focused on things that cross the U.S. borders and typically does not conduct operations at medical facilities. If anyone suspects -- or even wants to verify the legitimacy of -- a coronavirus-related product, HSI encourages the public to report that potential fraud to COVID19FRAUD@DHS.GOV.

Millions of Americans have received unemployment benefits in the last year, and a stimulus bill under consideration in Congress would pay an extra $400 week in jobless benefits in the future.

Scammers have noticed and have come up with a new scheme to steal some money. It’s actually a different form of identity theft. Scammers steal an identity and file a claim for unemployment benefits.

They’re stealing identities the way they always have. They trick people into sharing their Social Security numbers and other information. Other scammers make cold calls to potential victims and manipulate them into sharing personal information.

One crook told USA Today that he compiles a list of real people, then turns to the “dark web” to purchase corresponding dates of birth and Social Security numbers. Apparently, it’s all out there.

Easy money for fraudsters

Armed with that information, the scammer files a claim for unemployment benefits and can collect the money until the government discovers the scheme. It can be quite lucrative.

But you might be wondering how you, the victim, are harmed. There are more ways than you might think.

The state unemployment office may send your employer a letter to confirm your last day of employment. That could be a little awkward if you’re still on the payroll and might be difficult to explain.

But like any other form of identity theft, it can also harm you financially. Unemployment benefits are taxable. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is going to expect you to pay the taxes, not the scammer who collected the ill-gotten benefits.

How to protect yourself

According to the Better Business Bureau, there are ways you can protect yourself. If you receive an official notification about an unemployment claim that you never made, you need to report it. You’ll find your state’s contact info on this list.

Make sure you check your credit report at least once a year. An unemployment claim in your name means that scammers have your personal information. Under federal law, you can get free access to your credit reports from all three credit reporting agencies once a year at  AnnualCreditReport.com.

Finally, remain alert for any strange communication from your state unemployment office that mentions jobless benefits that you have not received.

Millions of Americans have gotten their coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination, and to celebrate, they’re posting pictures of their vaccination cards on social media. That’s not a good idea, warns the Better Business Bureau (BBB).

“The self-identifying information on it makes you vulnerable to identity theft and can help scammers create phony versions,” the organization said in a release.

The card showing that you have received the first dose of the vaccine displays your full name and date of birth. That’s not information you want just anyone to have. It gives criminals a head start on creating an identity that is parallel to yours.

And sharing personal information isn’t the only danger. Scammers are already producing counterfeit vaccination cards to sell on eBay and TikTok. In fact, authorities in the U.K. have already made some arrests.

While you might want to avoid posting a full picture of your vaccination card, that doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate your inoculation with your friends; you just need to do it safely. Here’s how:

• Post a picture of your vaccine sticker or use a profile frame.

• Check your security settings on all social media platforms to see what you are sharing and with whom. If you only want friends and family to see your posts, be sure that’s how your privacy settings are configured.

Online quizzes can be dangerous too

While we’re on the subject of sharing too much information, avoid answering risky social media surveys and think twice before participating in other viral personal posts, such as listing all the cars you’ve owned (including makes/model years), favorite songs, and top 10 TV shows. Some of these “favorite things” are commonly used passwords or security questions.

According to the BBB, some of these quizzes circulating on Facebook are actually put together by scammers who are fishing for personal information.

If you see questions like “What is your mother's maiden name?” or “What is the name of the street you grew up on?” then there’s likely a sinister motive behind those queries. 

Those just happen to be common security questions for banking and credit card accounts. The BBB says sharing this information can lead to your accounts being hacked and your personal and financial information being stolen.

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has spawned many new scams, and one of the latest involves Netflix. Scammers are sending out texts offering free Netflix service for a year.

“Due to the pandemic, Netflix is offering everyone a free year of service to help you stay at home,” one of the messages says. “Click the link to sign up.”

People who click the link will be taken to a website made to look like a Netflix page. There, they will be asked to fill in some personal data including credit card information.

Wait a minute! Why does Netflix need a credit card to provide free service? The scammer who is operating the bogus site hopes you won’t think to ask that question and will instead provide the requested information, focusing on all that free content you’re about to enjoy.

The Better Business Bureau (BBB) says its BBB Scam Tracker says it has received an increasing number of reports of this scam. If a victim provides a credit card number they find several fraudulent charges on their account.

According to one recent victim, the scammer charged their card repeatedly – even after they asked for a refund.

“[The scammers] said no other money would be taken out of my account again,” the victim reported. “Then, about a week later, they took $39.99, and I called and asked for a refund. They told me three days at first. Then, after three days I called back, and they told me seven-10 business days. It’s been 10 business days. And now I have no refund.”

What to do

People who are victimized by this scam should contact the fraud department of their credit card company immediately and report it. In most cases, the disputed charge will be removed.

To avoid this scam in the first place, don’t click on any links. If you think the offer might be legitimate, contact the company directly to verify it.  

Consumers should also understand that scammers have used Netflix to launch their schemes in the past. In 2019, scammers sent out phishing emails warning that the recipient’s Netflix account was about to be suspended because the company couldn’t process payment information.

The victim was then directed to a bogus site and asked to enter payment card information.

Misinformation is widely circulated around the internet. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, falsehoods about the virus and potential vaccines have populated social media platforms like YouTube on a regular basis. 

Now, a new study conducted by researchers from the University of California at Davis found that social media sites that call out misinformation about vaccines and provide a credible fact-check are most likely to positively influence consumers’ attitudes about vaccines. 

“What approaches are most effective at targeting vaccine misinformation on social media among users unlikely to visit fact-checking websites or engage with thorough corrections?” said the researchers wrote. “This project shows that seeing a fact-checking label immediately below a misinformation post can make viewers more favorable toward vaccines.”  

Setting the record straight

To see how effective fact-checking messages are at changing consumers’ attitudes about vaccines, the researchers showed nearly 1,200 participants various vaccine-related posts that contained misinformation and were flagged with different styles of fact-checking. 

The study revealed that posts containing fact-check tags right beneath them had a positive impact on consumers in terms of vaccine hesitancy. Prior to this study, all of the participants had reported some level of skepticism about vaccines in general. However, seeing the fact-check directly underneath a post was an effective way for the participants to develop more positive attitudes about vaccines. 

The team found that the source of the fact-check also played a role. Participants who deemed the source of a fact check as the most knowledgeable were more likely to experience the greatest shift in their perceptions. 

“In fact, fact-checking labels from health institutions and research universities were seen as more ‘expert’ than others, indirectly resulting in more positive attitudes toward vaccines,” said researcher Jingwen Zhang. 

Sharing facts on social media

The goal of this study was to highlight the ways that misinformation permeates social media and to discover effective ways that fact-checking can be utilized to most benefit consumers. 

“Because both individuals and groups can post misinformation, such as false claims about vaccines, social media have played a role in spreading misinformation,” Zhang said. 

As consumers across the country continue to get vaccinated for COVID-19, it’s more important than ever that they have all the facts. Moving forward, the researchers hope that more progress can be done in this area to ensure that any and all misinformation is flagged and fact-checked. 

“The most important thing I learned from this paper is that fact-checking is effective...giving people a simple label can change their attitude,” said Zhang. “Secondly, I am calling for more researchers and scientists to engage in public health and science communications. We need to be more proactive. We are not using our power right now.” 

Scammers are continuing to exploit the pandemic, most recently through schemes claiming to make it possible for people to purchase a COVID-19 vaccine. 

According to European and U.S. government officials, dark web forums are rife with scams related to the pandemic. Many scammers are now attempting to profit off the COVID-19 vaccine distribution program, which has gotten off to a slow start. 

At least seven different offers for supposed COVID-19 vaccines were found online, in dark web forums, and on the messaging app Telegram, Reuters reported. The offers promise people access to legitimate vaccines that sellers allegedly pulled from national stockpiles. 

A user on Telegram claimed to have vials of Moderna’s vaccines for $180 each, vials of the vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech for $150, and vials of AstraZeneca’s vaccine for $110 each.  The seller said the vials could be transported in “regulated temperature packs.” 

On other dark web sites, sellers are offering COVID-19 vaccines alongside stock photos of vaccines. Vials of fake COVID-19 vaccines are listed for between $500 and $1,000 (or the equivalent in bitcoin) on the dark web forum Agartha. Other vials are being offered in exchange for a donation and buyers’ medical history. 

‘No legitimate vaccine is sold online’

Drugmakers are aware of the increase in these types of scams and say consumers should never purchase a vaccine online. Legitimate vaccines will be administered at no cost. 

“Patients should never try to secure a vaccine online - no legitimate vaccine is sold online - and only get vaccinated at certified vaccination centers or by certified healthcare providers,” a Pfizer spokesman said in a statement.

As of Monday, about 4.5 million Americans had received their first COVID-19 shot, according to the CDC. Under the current distribution timeline, most people will likely have to wait until spring or summer to get their shot. 

Consumers across the U.S. will soon be receiving some much-needed government aid now that President Trump has signed the latest COVID-19 stimulus bill. But like many other things in 2020, optimism must go hand-in-hand with some caution. 

The FTC says that consumers will need to be on guard against scammers who are looking to get their hands on the new wave of stimulus funds. In a blog post, Jennifer Leach -- the FTC’s associate director of the Division of Consumer  & Business Education -- provided a checklist of three things that people should keep in mind. 

1. Firstly, Leach says that the government will not be asking you to pay an upfront fee to get your stimulus check. Anyone saying otherwise is trying to defraud you.

2. Leach follows up by saying that the government will also not call, text, email, or contact you on social media to get details like your Social Security number, bank account information, or credit card number. 

3. Finally, she says that there isn’t a way to get your money earlier or faster. Scammers may use that line to reel in those who are desperately in need of money.

“We know from the early days of the CARES Act that scammers will be using numbers 1,2, and 3, above, as part of their playbook,” Leach warned. 

As always, consumers are encouraged to report any of the above suspicious behaviors to the FTC so that the agency can move to stop potential scammers. You can do so by visiting the agency’s website here.

It comes as no surprise that there are a plethora of scams rolling out as COVID-19 vaccines begin to be distributed and administered, and all of them are meant to sow confusion and fleece consumers.

Because of the intricacies involved with these vaccines, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is warning Americans that scammers are working the gray areas to snare people unacquainted with all the particulars.

Five things to keep in mind

In the FTC’s mind, there are five things someone should keep in mind regarding the vaccine:

The vaccine is supposed to be free. It’s not “likely” that anyone will need to pay anything out of pocket to get the vaccine during this public health emergency, the FTC says.

You don’t have to pay to be put on a list. There’s no list at the doctor’s, a drugstore, or anywhere else where you can pay to put your name on a list to get the vaccine. However, there is a pecking order. 

“For most people living in the U.S., states and territories will make the final decisions on who will get the vaccines and when. States are also working on their own specific vaccination plans,” writes Colleen Tressler, a member of the FTC’s Division of Consumer and Business Education. 

Tressler suggests checking with individual state governments for specific information regarding distribution plans in that state. 

You can’t pay to get early access to the vaccine. Again, a $50 handshake is not going to get you anywhere any faster when it comes to the vaccine.

Don’t give out your private information to anyone. “No one from a vaccine distribution site or health care payer, like a private insurance company, will call you asking for your Social Security number or your credit card or bank account information to sign you up to get the vaccine,” Tressler says. If you get one of those calls, simply hang up.

Be on the lookout for snake oil! Scammers tried the “miracle cure” route earlier in the pandemic’s life, and they’re back again. The FTC says to pay particular attention to anyone who offers other products, treatments, or medicines to prevent the virus. Before you even think about paying for or receiving any COVID-19-related treatment, you should check with your health care provider first.

The bottom line is this: If you get a call, text, email, or someone shows up at your front door saying they can get you early access to the vaccine, stop right there because you’re about to be scammed.

Instead, the FTC would like you to report what happened to its ReportFraud.ftc.gov website or file a complaint with your state or territory attorney general through consumerresources.org, the consumer website of the National Association of Attorneys General.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 19 partner agencies have launched a nationwide effort to disrupt a plague of money-making schemes that have proliferated since the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The economic hardship that has thrown millions of Americans out of work has also increased people’s vulnerability to schemes that “guarantee” solid income, or even financial independence, by working from home.

"Operation Income Illusion," is a coordinated crackdown that includes more than 50 law enforcement actions against the operators of work-from-home and employment scams, pyramid schemes, investment scams, bogus coaching courses, and other schemes that can end up costing consumers thousands of dollars.

A new FTC analysis of complaint data shows that consumers reported a loss of more than $610 million to these types of scams in the last four years. Losses in the first nine months of 2020, which covers much of the pandemic, totaled more than $150 million.

Preying on the unemployed

"Scammers are preying on the unemployment and anxiety arising from the pandemic by making false promises of big income working from home," said Andrew Smith, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. "If someone promises you guaranteed income, but then tells you to pay them, tell the FTC right away so we can work to shut them down."

There are other red flags that should tell Americans they’re being set up by a criminal who will make them poorer, not richer. 

• Someone promises big money by stuffing envelopes. Really? They have machines that can do that now. Also, you have to pay a fee for the privilege.

• Someone offers to sell you a system for setting up an internet business. 

• Someone promises big money in your own medical billing businesses.

In fact, unsolicited pitches for any kind of home-based business are almost always scams. The tip-off is the fee that you are required to pay to participate.

Softer scams

A softer version of these scams is an offer to provide business coaching to help you set up some kind of business or to operate some type of franchise. These operators may actually provide some “coaching” or information, but there is a real question as to its value, especially considering the very high price.

Most multi-level marketing (MLM) operations are legal but some unscrupulous operators use deceptive tactics, promising huge income without explaining how difficult it is to achieve it and what’s required. 

“Also, if anyone suggests recruiting is the real way to make money, know this: MLMs that survive on recruiting new participants rather than retail sales are pyramid schemes,” the FTC said in a recent bulletin on work-at-home schemes. “Pyramid schemes are illegal, and the vast majority of participants lose money.”

In addition to ten previously announced cases, the FTC has launched four additional law enforcement cases as part of Operation Income Illusion. The agency has also announced a new settlement in a previously filed case. 

In all these cases, the FTC is asking the court to stop the operators and to get money back for affected consumers.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, a great deal of misinformation about the virus has been circulated on social media. 

Now, a new study conducted by researchers from Washington State University has found that consumers are more likely to buy into this misinformation when they spend more time on social media. 

“It seems that the more you use social media, the more likely you become worried about COVID-19, perhaps because there is a lot of unfounded and conspiracy theories on social media,” said researcher Yan Su. “Then this in turn can trigger a high level of worry which leads to further belief in misinformation.”

The importance of engaging with different ideas

To understand the relationship between social media use and belief in misinformation, the researchers analyzed over 3,000 responses to the American National Elections Exploratory Testing Survey. While the survey covered a wide range of topics, the researchers were primarily focused on how much time the respondents spent on social media and where they stood on critical stances regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Participants were more likely to believe that either a vaccine for COVID-19 had been created or that the virus was created in a lab if they spent more time on social media. While several pharmaceutical companies have since created a vaccine for COVID-19, this data was collected in early April, which means this misinformation had reached consumers at a critical point in the pandemic. 

Additionally, the study revealed that the more worried people became about the pandemic, the more likely they were to believe misinformation on social media. However, the researchers also learned that participants weren’t doomed to get stuck in this cycle. Engaging with people who had different points of view was found to be a key component in not buying into misinformation on social media. Those who had a deeper understanding of science were also more likely to identify and reject falsehoods. 

“Fact checkers are important for social media platforms to implement,” said Su. “When there is no fact checker, people just choose to believe what is consistent with their pre-existing beliefs. It’s also important for people to try to get out of their comfort zones and echo chambers by talking with people who have different points of view and political ideologies. When people are exposed to different ideas, they have a chance to do some self-reflection and self-correction, which is particularly beneficial for deliberation.” 

The researchers hope that future studies continue to explore this area because they worry about how the continued spread of misinformation about the pandemic will continue to affect consumers.

“During the COVID-19 pandemic, social media has spread a lot of conspiracy theories and misinformation, which has negative consequences because many people use these false statements as evidence to consolidate their pre-existing political ideologies and attack each other,” Su said. “It’s important to understand the antecedents and motivations for believing and circulating misinformation beliefs, so we can find ways to counteract them.”

In an effort to stay one step ahead of scammers, experts are warning consumers to be ready for emails, texts, and ads hawking phony coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines. With vaccine approval likely only days away, scammers can be expected to try and cash in.

In fact, they’ve already done so. Early in the pandemic, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sent warning letters to several telecom companies because scammers were using their services to hawk phony cures for the virus. 

Scammers have also targeted unsuspecting consumers by asking them to participate in a COVID-19 vaccine trial. The catch? They were told they had to pay to participate. Real clinical trial participants are never asked to pay

So it’s highly likely with positive vaccine news being reported lately that scammers will try to use that as a way to take advantage of people. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is already working with pharmaceutical companies to stop the sale and distribution of phony versions of a vaccine. 

Alerting the public

The next step, officials say, is alerting the public to disregard any solicitation to buy a COVID-19 vaccine. The only way to get the real vaccine is through medical facilities or retail pharmacies and supermarkets that have the freezers to keep the vaccines at the proper frigid temperature. A real vaccine must also be administered by a health care professional.

“Selling fake vaccines and other treatments is likely only one of many ways scammers will try to cash in on the vaccine release,” said the Better Business Bureau (BBB) in its latest fraud alert. “Watch out for phishing messages attempting to trick you into sharing your passwords and personal information.”

There are already documented phishing scams, distributed by email, that impersonate the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO).  The BBB has also reported an increase in scams using robocalls to impersonate government officials.

Here are some ways to protect yourself:

• Disregard “news” about the vaccine that is sent to you unsolicited. Check legitimate news sources to keep up with vaccine information.

• Ask a health care professional. If you are uncertain about some vaccine “news” you’ve heard, ask your pharmacist.

• Avoid a sense of urgency. If someone tells you that you must act now or risk not getting the vaccine, they’re scamming you. 

• Don’t click on any links in unsolicited emails. If you do, you’ll likely download some malware.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is warning that robocallers are now calling consumers and pretending to be from Apple and Amazon. 

In a statement on its website Thursday, the agency said consumers should be wary of a recorded message telling them about a suspicious purchase made on their Amazon account or a problem fulfilling a recent order. 

In another version of the scheme, the caller tells recipients that there has been suspicious activity on their Apple iCloud account. The robocaller tells the consumer that their iCloud account may have been breached and that they should then press 1 to speak with customer service to get the issue sorted out.

In both variations of the scam, the robocaller will at some point attempt to extract a consumer’s personal information, like their credit card number or account passwords. 

“If you get an unexpected call or message about a problem with any of your accounts, hang up,” the FTC said. “Do not press 1 to speak with customer support, do not call a phone number they gave you, do not give out your personal information.”

The agency added that consumers who believe there may legitimately be an issue with either their Amazon or Apple account should contact the company directly through their website or by phone. 

Increase in scams

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in scams designed to steal personal information and/or dupe consumers out of money. Scammers are using illegal robocalls to pitch everything from work-from-home schemes to low-priced health insurance. 

The FTC says consumers should be aware that scammers are attempting to make a profit during the pandemic. To avoid falling victim, the agency recommends: 

• Never responding to texts, emails or calls about checks from the government; 

• Ignoring offers for vaccinations and miracle treatments or cures;

• Hanging up on robocalls;

• Being wary of emails claiming to be from the CDC or the World Health Organization;

• Never clicking on links from sources you don’t know; and

• Being cautious when donating. The FTC recommends not donating in cash, by gift card, or by wiring money.

During the holiday season, phishing scams usually disguise themselves as delivery or credit card companies.

You know the drill: you receive an email with an official-looking logo that tells you the delivery company has been unable to deliver your package or your credit card has been revoked. The scammer hopes that just enough people who are expecting a package or have made a lot of credit card purchases will see the message and overreact.

But in this year of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, scammers have another weapon in their arsenal. So many people are using Zoom to communicate with school, the office, and family that a message saying your Zoom account is being canceled is enough to induce panic.

Consumer authorities report a surge of reports of this kind of scheme. A social media message or a text includes Zoom’s logo and contains a message saying something like, “Your Zoom account has been suspended. Click here to reactivate.” 

Several different versions

Other versions of the scam use the message “You missed a meeting, click here to see the details and reschedule.” In either case, the sender wants you to click on the link in the message because doing so will download malware onto your device.

According to the Better Business Bureau (BBB), scammers registered more than 2,449 Zoom-related domains from late April to early May. They’ve been using them ever since to bombard unsuspecting consumers with bogus emails.

While these scammers aren’t trying to steal money or your identity -- at least not directly -- they are seeking to take control of your computer, which could actually be worse. Once inside they might be able to help themselves to your bank account or steal enough personal data to steal your identity.

A key logger would be able to watch everything you do with your device. Entering your username and password gives scammers access to your account and any other account that uses a similar login and password combination.

Dos and don’ts

To avoid this, think before you react to any unexpected email. It may say it’s from Zoom, but it probably isn’t.

Look carefully at the domain address. It should say either Zoom.com or Zoom.us. Anything else, and it’s not an official communication.

Make it a rule to never click on links contained in unsolicited emails. When in doubt, use a search engine to get to the company’s website. They all have a “contact us” page where you can ask if the communication is real. Without clicking any links, copy and paste the contents of the email into the “contact us” form.

If you think there may be a legitimate issue with your account, contact the company directly by going to its website by either typing in the URL or doing a search. Don’t click on the link in the email.

Scams seem to be a staple of the holiday season and this year, with the coronavirus (COVID-19) changing so much about daily life, consumer advocates warn it’s about to get a lot worse.

With so many traditional holiday events being canceled, some are being staged virtually. Scammers have noticed this trend and the Better Business Bureau (BBB) warns they are trying to trick people into attending fake events.

You might see something in a search queue or on social media about your town’s holiday event moving online because of the virus. But there’s something else different about it. In past years, attendance has been free but for the (fake) online event, you have to buy a ticket.

The scammer may explain the cost by saying it’s to pay for logistics, or he might tug at your heartstrings by saying the money will go to help the less fortunate in your community. It all sounds reasonable.

Fake event pages and social posts

“Unfortunately, the ‘ticket’ is a scam!” BBB warns in its latest scam update. “The event information you found was posted by scammers and not affiliated with the real holiday market. Con artists are creating fake event pages, social posts, and emails to confuse attendees into sharing their credit card information.”

The BBB suggests steering clear of paying to attend a local virtual holiday event. If you do pay for any kind of event, use a credit card since it likely has greater fraud protection than other forms of payment.

With cold weather arriving with the holidays, home heating bills may be rising. Each year scammers try to trick people by claiming to be from the utility company and threatening to cut off their electricity or gas if they don’t pay immediately.

"Utility scammers are very sophisticated, and they use a variety of tactics to take advantage of you,” said Corynne Arnett, Dominion Energy's senior vice president of regulatory affairs and customer experience. “Sometimes they will use scare tactics and a false sense of urgency to obtain your personal information, while other times they will sound friendly and sympathetic to gain your trust.”

Utility companies don’t call

Remember that utility companies never demand payment over the phone. If you get one of these calls during the holidays or later in the winter, Arnett says you should hang up immediately.

If you are victimized by a scam during the holidays, consumer authorities urge you to report it immediately. They say there’s no reason to feel embarrassed.

“We always think it’s seniors or it’s those who are uneducated, and that’s absolutely not the case, everyone is vulnerable and what we have seen is over the last six months even more people are vulnerable because we are doing so much more online,” said Janet Robb, CEO of the Arkansas Better Business Bureau.

Scammers are criminals who employ psychological tricks to catch people off guard. Authorities say by reporting the crime, victims can help others avoid becoming victims.

Last week, the Better Business Bureau (BBB) issued a warning to consumers about a growing scam linked to the COVID-19 pandemic. Officials said scammers had recently begun targeting people with the opportunity to participate in bogus clinical trials. 

This scam is particularly dangerous right now because of the success that companies like Pfizer and Moderna have seen with their recent Stage 3 clinical trials. With that in mind, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has stepped in with several tips to help people avoid becoming victims.

In a blog post, FTC consumer education specialist Jim Kreidler lays out the following things that consumers should keep in mind when considering participation in a research study:

Never pay to be part of a clinical trial or to find out about them. Real clinical trials will never ask for payment for either of those things. 

Conduct an online search. Before joining a trial, it’s a smart idea to search its official name and add keywords like “scam,” “review,” or “complaint” to see if anything suspicious pops up.

Beware of what information the researchers are asking for. To help identify valid candidates, clinical trials will often need certain details like your name, contact information, age, gender, race, ethnicity, and any pertinent health information. However, they should never ask for financial information in that line of questioning.

Don’t share financial information. The FTC notes that real clinical trials will sometimes pay consumers for their participation, but you can request payment in the form of a check instead of having it directly deposited in your account.

Use approved resources to sign up for trials. To give yourself an even better chance of avoiding scammers, you can sign up for clinical trials by going to websites that have been vetted by regulators. The FTC offers ClinicalTrials.gov and the COVID-19 Prevention Network as two good resources.

As always, the FTC asks consumers to inform its officials about any potential scams that they might run into. You can do that by submitting a fraud report on the agency’s website.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced Thursday that it is once again sending out warning letters to companies that have made unsupported claims that their products and services can help fight COVID-19. 

In total, the agency says that it has sent over 330 such letters in an effort to stop health-related COVID-19 scams. The latest batch of letters is the ninth set sent by the FTC, and it covers everything from copper water bottles to water treatment systems. 

If the companies do not retract their false claims, regulators say they will seek a federal injunction and demand that victims receive a refund. Details published by the FTC about the products being sold and the offending marketers are shown below:

Bead Bracelets

• Bombshell Beads, LLC (Mount Juliet, TN) 

Copper Water Bottles

• Copper H2O (Blaine, WA)

Fitness Classes/Personal Training

• Camp TUF (Pantego, TX) 

Indoor Tanning/Red Light Therapy/Intravenous Ultraviolet Light Therapy

• I B Tan (Citrus Heights, CA) 

• Vibrant Life Oklahoma (Claremore, OK) 

Peptide Therapies/Intravenous Vitamin Drips and Injections/Intravenous Laser Therapy

• Age Management Institute Santa Barbara (Santa Barbara, CA) 

• MD Beauty Labs, P.A. (W. Palm Beach, FL) 

• Murfreesboro Bio Renew Clinic (Murfreesboro, TN) 

• Park Avenue Skin Solutions (New York, NY) 

• Revive Colorado (Denver, CO) 

• Tribeca Wellness Collective (New York, NY) 

Ozone Therapy/Stem Cell Therapy and Immunotherapy/Intravenous Therapy

• American Regenerative Clinic (Bingham Farms, MI) 

• Health and Wellness of Carmel (Carmel, IN) 

• Howard Robins, DPM (New York, NY) 

• The Fuel Stop (New York, NY) 

Supplements

• C’est Si Bon Company (Torrance, CA) 

• Integrative Health Carolinas (Charlotte, NC) 

• Robert O. Young (Valley Center, CA) 

Water Filtration Systems

• Hector Gotay Feliciano, dba Gotay’s Group Systems and Cebilon Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico) 

• Karen Martí Reyes, dba Cebilon Y Vivenso #1Germany Sistem “Premios Awars [sic]  2020” (Puerto Rico)

Since April, a handful of pharmaceutical companies have been developing vaccines and treatments for the coronavirus (COVID-19) and testing them in clinical trials.

These clinical trials have been in the news for months. Monday’s report from Pfizer that its vaccine candidate achieved a more than 90 percent efficacy rate elevated clinical trials to the lead story. That could make a new COVID-19 scam even more dangerous.

For weeks, the Better Business Bureau (BBB) has been tracking a scam in which people receive a text message promising $1,000 or more if they’ll participate in a clinical trial. The trial is supposedly one that is testing either a vaccine or treatment for the virus.

One version of the message reads: “Local Covid19 Study: Compensation up to $1,220! Qualify Here: [link removed] stop2stop,” and contains a link. The message instructs the recipient to click to determine whether they are eligible.

“No matter how curious you are – or how much you could use an extra $1,200 – don’t click,” the BBB advises. "It’s a scam!”

Unleashes malware

The link doesn’t lead to a potential $1,200 but instead downloads malware onto your device. Once downloaded, the virus can give scammers access to your usernames, passwords, and other personal information stored on your device.

In another version of the scam, the link actually takes potential victims to a webpage that looks like a real clinical trial. But the questions you’ll be asked extend far beyond what a legitimate clinical trial would ask. Some targets have reported being asked for Social Security and bank account numbers.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is also tracking this scam. Jim Kreidler, consumer education specialist at the FTC, recently warned that some of these scams are highly sophisticated and hoping to catch consumers off guard.

“They might promise you a doctor’s care and more than $1000 in payment...but as soon as they try to charge you for access, or ask for your Social Security, bank account, or credit card number, your Spidey sense should start tingling, because, unfortunately, some of these so-called ‘research studies’ are fake,” Kreidler wrote in a consumer information bulletin.

How to avoid the scam

The best way to avoid these scams is to simply ignore the message. While drug developers sometimes advertise for clinical trial participants, they don’t do it with random text messages. 

One big tipoff that the offer is a scam is if the “clinical trial” expects you to pay to be involved. It doesn’t work that way.

If you’re curious, go to ClinicalTrials.gov, a site maintained by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Library of Medicine (NLM). You can see what trials are actually being conducted and who’s running them. 

If the text message does not mention a government agency, university, or hospital, it’s additional evidence that you’re dealing with a scam.

Early in the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, when Americans were homebound and sheltering in place, there was a wave of pet adoptions as people sought companionship.

Scammers noticed and began launching cruel schemes to separate people from their money.

In one of the latest operations, a scammer in Fargo, N.D. posed as a cat breeder and swindled people nationwide. The Valley News reports Fargo police have received a number of complaints, including from a victim in Arizona.

That individual told police they lost more than $2,000, paying fees for adoption, vaccines, shipping, a city permit, and an additional request for $1,000 for COVID-related fees.

According to Fraud.org, pet adoption scams have risen 42 percent this year. Scammers launch websites purporting to be breeders or adoption agencies. They use stock photos of adorable puppies and kittens to tug at the heartstrings.

In nearly every case, the victim lives out of the area and doesn’t see the pet in person -- a crucial mistake. That’s because, in nearly every case, the animal doesn’t exist. The fees demanded by the scammer, however, are very real.

A consistent pattern

Fraud.org says these pet scams often follow a consistent pattern. After the victims are hooked on a particular dog or cat, they are told about the money required to take possession of it. In one case cited by the organization, a victim was told:

• To pay $500 to ship the puppy via American Airlines;

• To pay $970 for a crate to ship the puppy safely;

• To pay $1,500 for insurance to make sure the puppy arrived safely;

• To pay $760 for the puppy’s shots.

The victim was instructed to make the first payment using a Reloadit money card and subsequent payments using Western Union. Both are bright red flags that you’re dealing with a scammer. Scammers often want no part of being paid with a credit card, which has fraud protection.

Some other ways to protect yourself from these criminals is to only adopt a pet that you have seen in person. Ask a lot of questions.

Finally, consider adopting a pet from a local animal shelter. Animals have usually been well cared for and costs are much lower.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reports a large increase in the number of Americans falling victim to scams originating on social media. The FTC said the spike began almost as soon as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic hit.

The agency says the number of complaints about scams that started on social media more than tripled in the last 12 months. People reported losing more than $117 million to these types of scams in just the first six months of 2020 compared to $134 million for all of 2019, according to the FTC’s latest Consumer Protection Data Spotlight.

Online shopping topped the list of complaints from consumers who reported a scam to the FTC that originated on social media. During those first few weeks in the spring when nearly everyone was sheltering in place, scammers ran social media ads for home delivery of all sorts of household products that never arrived.

An overwhelming majority of victims -- 94 percent -- said the scams were delivered on either Facebook or Instagram. Those two platforms were also favorite vehicles for romance scams.

Bogus income opportunities

Other common scams revolved around economic relief or income opportunities. The FTC says people who suddenly lost their jobs were the most likely to be victimized.

“As people seek more ways to earn money, reports about multi-level marketing (MLM) companies and pyramid schemes – including blessing circles and other gifting schemes – on social media have increased,” the FTC said in its latest Data Spotlight. “The numbers were up a staggering fivefold in the second quarter of 2020.”

Social media proved to be a powerful tool for scammers running these types of schemes. The FTC said the pitch was often distributed through hacked Facebook accounts so it would appear a friend was recommending the pyramid scheme.

In a few cases, the FTC said some people who bit on the scammer’s pitch distributed it to their friends, legitimately believing it to be a good opportunity in economically uncertain times.

The FTC says the use of social networks to target victims gives a scammer added power. It says scammers can obtain trust by breaking into one of these networks of people who know one another.

Tips for avoiding scams

To protect yourself from scams launched from social media platforms, the FTC offers this advice:

• Check out the company before you buy anything based on a social media ad. Type its name in a search engine with words like or “scam” or “complaint.”

• Never send money to a love interest you have not met in person.

• If you get a message from a friend about a way to get some financial relief, call them. Did they forward it to you? If not, tell them their account may have been hacked. If so, check it out before you act.

• Before paying to enroll in an income “opportunity,” check out ftc.gov/mlm

• Don’t make it easy for scammers to target you – check your social media privacy settings to limit what you share publicly.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel says her office is receiving reports of scammers posing as delivery companies seeking to steal personal information through phishing texts.

The scam isn’t exactly new -- few scams are -- but it’s getting new life since the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic led to a surge in online shopping. With the holidays approaching, Nessel says consumers everywhere should remain vigilant.

“What we know for certain is that bad actors will stop at nothing to obtain our personal information, and it is important that we all stay on alert,” said Nessel. “If you are expecting a package and you receive a text message from an unrecognizable number, independently verify the origin first. Contact the company you purchased from or the individual who sent you the package.”

What you should not do is click on the link in one of these phony text messages. Doing so could allow scammers to download malware onto your phone, or to trick you into entering passwords, credit card details, or other personal information that can be used to commit fraud.  

What to look for

The recent text messages use similar language and look like this: Nessel provided this example of what some of the fake text messages look like:

“FedEx: shipment 71206 update: on the way.  Click here: c7fsvinfo/oToaiibv6A.  (using different numbers and links in the message)”

Others are even more dangerous, addressing the potential victim by name, making it appear to be a legitimate message. Here’s an example” 

“Jessica, urgent notice about your USPS package 3K9355 from 04/10/2020.  Proceed to m4svk.info/UENAnGm4zh” 

If your name is Jessica and you happen to be expecting a USPS delivery you might instinctively click on the link. Nessel says that would be a big mistake.

Instead, she suggests calling the delivery company directly if you think it might be real using a telephone number that you look up yourself. Once you verify that the message is fake, Nessel says you should delete it and block the number.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) tally as compiled by Johns Hopkins University. (Previous numbers in parentheses.)

Total U.S. confirmed cases: 7,464,372 (7,423,328)

Total U.S. deaths: 210,313 (209,857)

Total global cases: 35,559,026 (35,252,679)

Total global deaths: 1,045,390 (1,038,307)

White House reportedly blocks FDA vaccine guidelines

The Trump administration has reportedly blocked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) proposed guidelines to vaccine developers on steps they must follow before bringing a vaccine against the coronavirus (COVID-19) to market -- steps that would have precluded a vaccine before the Nov. 3 election.

The guidelines called for vaccine developers to carefully follow subjects in Phase 3 clinical trials for two months after the trial to make sure the vaccine had not caused any adverse effects. After that time, the drug companies would be allowed to apply for emergency use authorization.

A senior administration confirmed the move to Reuters, saying the White House believed there was “no clinical or medical reason” for the additional requirement.

Seventeen more retailers at risk of bankruptcy

There has been a wave of retail bankruptcies since the coronavirus shut down the economy, and industry experts predict there will be more in the months ahead. According to the retail publication Retail Dive, there are at least 17 national retailers at risk of default.

The publication notes that bankruptcies have largely slowed as the industry heads into the holiday season. Depending on how the holidays shake out, it says 2021 could bring another wave of bankruptcies. 

Of the 17 retailers on CreditRiskMonitor’s “at-risk” list, 11 are apparel retailers that could join Brooks Brothers, J. Crew, and Lord & Taylor, which filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this year.

Doctors concerned by White House photo op

President Trump returned to the White House Monday after being treated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center for COVID-19, saying he felt great. But his photo op on the White House balcony is giving health officials a bad case of heartburn.

Trump stood on the balcony and removed his mask, something COVID-19 patients are never advised to do. Even though Trump was alone on the balcony, doctors say it was not a good idea.

Trump, meanwhile, told Americans in a tweet that they should not live in fear of the virus. "One thing that's for certain – don't let it dominate you. Don't be afraid of it. You're going to beat it," he said. 

Wisconsin searches for answers

In many Midwestern states where coronavirus cases have spiked, college students were primary suspects for causing the spread and have been called out for partying and not social distancing. But in Wisconsin, health officials are having second thoughts.

They note that while there were initial outbreaks in college towns like Milwaukee and Madison, cases lately have surged in communities where there are no colleges.

“To say that A caused B, we need to have more than just A happened before B,”  Ryan Westergaard, Wisconsin’s chief medical officer for the Bureau of Communicable Diseases, told The Wall Street Journal. “Saying that these rapid outbreaks at college campuses caused statewide transmission to go up -- we don’t have enough evidence to make that link with any certainty.”

Who’s most likely to die from COVID-19?

Since the beginning of the pandemic, more than 210,000 Americans have died from the coronavirus. The Wall Street Journal has broken down nine months of data to determine who has died from the virus.

Information from death certificates shows that around 79 percent of recorded deaths are among people aged 65 and over while people under age 35 account for just 1 percent of known deaths.  Nearly a third of deaths have affected people who are at least 85 years old.

Fifty-four percent of the fatalities are men while 46 percent are women. Being in a long-term care facility is also a risk factor, with that population consistently making up about 40 percent of coronavirus deaths.

Around the nation

• Vermont: The state’s annual apple harvest has been linked to the state’s worst outbreak since June 3. The state health department reported 33 new cases Monday, mostly among migrant workers at an Addison County apple orchard. 

• Nevada: The Division of Industrial Relations (DIR) reports that four businesses in the state were cited during the week beginning Sept. 28 for non-compliance with COVID-19 rules. Officials say the state has recorded an 89 percent compliance rate since the rules went into effect.

• Indiana: Gov. Eric Holcomb says the state has made good progress in reducing coronavirus cases, so he’s lifting some restrictions on businesses. However, he says the mandate to wear masks in public will remain in effect until Oct. 17.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged a National Football League (NFL) player and 10 others for their alleged participation in a coronavirus-related scam. 

In a ploy to game the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), NFL free agent Josh Bellamy, a University of Louisville product who has played for the Chicago Bears, New York Jets, and other teams, allegedly colluded with friends and family to obtain millions of dollars in fraudulent PPP loans. All told, there were more than 90 loan applications filed by the 10 people charged in the matter, totaling more than $24 million. The DOJ says many of those loan applications were approved and funded by financial institutions, paying out at least $17.4 million.

Bellamy was arrested in Florida on Thursday and formally charged in a federal criminal complaint for wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud.

The CARES Act was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. One leg of the relief program was the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans exclusively made to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses.

Securing fraudulent loans

In the early stages of the scheme, Phillip J. Augustin -- who operates a talent management company called Clear Vision Music Group LLC -- was able to land a fraudulent PPP loan for his company using falsified documents. After hitting gold with that fake application, Augustin allegedly began to co-conspire with others, including Bellamy, to help them obtain PPP loans for themselves and score a kickback for himself for showing them how to pull off the scam.

Bellamy allegedly obtained a PPP loan of $1,246,565 for his own company, Drip Entertainment LLC. With the PPP cash-in-hand, Bellamy allegedly went on a shopping spree, buying more than $104,000 in luxury goods at Dior, Gucci, and other retailers. 

The DOJ also alleges that Bellamy didn’t stop there; officials say he also sought out PPP loans on behalf of his family and friends.

Thousands of posts for coronavirus-related scams have circulated on social media during the pandemic, according to a study published recently in the Journal of Medical Internet Research Public Health and Surveillance.

After analyzing content on Twitter and Instagram, the researchers found nearly 2,000 posts containing dubious claims about products or “treatments” related to the virus. Most of the scammers were peddling products with no verified health benefits, while others were selling unapproved testing kits or other unproven COVID-19 related cures. 

The researchers said these untested products and purported cures could put consumer health at risk and dupe people out of money.

"From March to May 2020, we have identified nearly 2,000 fraudulent postings likely tied to fake COVID-19 health products, financial scams, and other consumer risk," wrote lead author Timothy Mackey, an associate adjunct professor of medicine at the University of California, San Diego.

More are likely to show up

Mackey and his colleagues said another wave of posts for fake testing kits or unproven cures is likely to crop up when officials announce an effective COVID-19 vaccine or treatment.

"We're in a post-digital era and as this boom of digital adoption continues, we will see more of these fraudulent postings targeting consumers as criminals seek to take advantage of those in need during times of a crisis," Mackey said in a news release.

To spot a posting for a fraudulent product, Mackey advises consumers to check for the following red flags: 

• Mentions of bulk or rapid sales, cheap pricing, and questionable claims, such as FDA approval or specific certifications.

• Products, such as COVID-19 testing kits, imported from abroad. Mackey says purchases from abroad “should be considered risky.” 

• Business being conducted through social media direct messaging or a communications app, like Skype or WhatsApp. The researchers say this way of conducting business usually indicates a scam. 

The best course of action for those concerned about contracting COVID-19 or those who want to be tested for the virus is to "first work with their personal health care provider or local public health agency to ensure safe access to testing or treatment,” Mackey said. He added that any suspicious activity should be reported to federal authorities.

"Our hope is that the results from this study will better inform social media users so they can better decipher between fraudulent and legitimate posts," he said. "We conducted this research with the goal that eventually it will lead to improved tools and policy changes so that social media can be used as a force for good."

With Congress still deadlocked over providing additional aid during the COVID-19 pandemic, many consumers are struggling to stay financially afloat. Because of the desperation that has spawned from this crisis, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says it’s even more important to be aware of scammers who are looking to take advantage of the situation. 

In a recent blog post, FTC investigator Diana Shiller said that one of the latest schemes to look out for involves supposed money offers that are being made by companies on platforms like Facebook and WhatsApp. She says consumers are reporting seeing messages from many well-known companies that offer money to those who may be in need. 

“People have reported seeing messages that seem to be from Pepsi, Walmart, Target, and other big-name brands. These messages all offer money to people who need it -- through grants, coupons for food support, or other giveaways. But they’re all fake, and not from those companies at all,” Shiller warned. 

Online phishing scams

Shiller says what scammers are actually doing with these offers is running a phishing scam that’s intended to collect personal information. Although the thought of receiving help from a benevolent company might be nice, the fact of the matter is that there is no actual assistance being offered. In fact, receiving the message through a friend isn’t even a guarantee that you’re not being played.

“There’s no money to get, and no help to be had. Just scammers. It could have been a real (and hopeful) friend who forwarded that message to you -- but it could have been a scammer who hacked your friend’s account,” Shiller said.

The FTC says that consumers who receive a suspicious offer should submit a complaint on the agency’s website. Aside from that, it’s important to not click or share any links that were included in the messages. If you have any doubts, the agency says to simply delete the messages and directly contact the person who messaged you in the first place to see if they actually sent you the information. Given the damage these scam offers could inflict, it’s better to be safe than sorry. 

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is going after a trio of defendants who have built more than 300 fraudulent websites selling hard-to-find coronavirus-related health and safety items.

The DOJ’s first move was to obtain a Temporary Restraining Order in an effort to bring the scammers to a screeching halt. The enforcement action -- filed in Tampa, Florida -- is part of the Justice Department’s non-stop efforts focused on finding, investigating, and prosecuting illegal conduct related to the pandemic. Dealing with those who unscrupulously profit off of the pandemic is a prime concern for the DOJ. 

“The Department of Justice is committed to preventing fraudsters from exploiting this pandemic for personal gain,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Ethan P. Davis of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division.  “We will use every resource at the government’s disposal to pursue scammers who are stealing money from citizens amidst the ongoing public health crisis.”

How the con works

As laid out in court filings, Thu Phan Dinh, Tran Khanh, and Nguyen Duy Toan -- all residents of Vietnam and yet to be located -- are reputed to have taken part in a wire fraud scheme seeking to profit from the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The complaint said that the defendants operated more than 300 websites pushing products that became scarce during the pandemic, such as hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes. The haul was pretty good, the DOJ said, claiming thousands of victims in all 50 states who attempted to purchase these items from the scam websites but never received the products they bought.

The complaint alleges that defendants set up hundreds of email accounts and payment accounts with PayPal to grease the skids of the scheme and keep it hidden from law enforcement. 

Defendants are also alleged to have listed fake contact listings on the sites which, in turn, caused a rash of complaints from defrauded consumers going to innocent individuals and businesses who had no hand in the scam at all.

What to look out for

If the DOJ can bring these fraudsters to justice, that might be a big haul. Unfortunately, in hydra-like fashion, there’s likely to be others who want to bilk the consumer off the back of COVID-19. As a precaution, the agency recommends that Americans take the following precautionary measures to protect themselves from known and emerging scams related to COVID-19:

• Verify anything and everything related to COVID-19. Independently verify the identity of any company, charity, or individual that contacts you regarding COVID-19 or any products relating to COVID-19.

• Double-check websites and email addresses. If you’re contacted by any website that offers information, products, or services related to COVID-19, the DOJ says to take a careful look at the email address the message is sent from. Scammers often employ addresses that differ only slightly from those belonging to the entities they are impersonating. As a case-in-point, they might use “cdc.com” or “cdc.org” instead of “cdc.gov.”

• Treat unsolicited emails as a warning flag. If you didn’t go looking for health and safety items, then it’s a pretty good bet that any unsolicited emails offering information, supplies, or treatment for COVID-19 or requesting your personal information for medical purposes are illegitimate. Legitimate health authorities will not contact the general public this way. The DOJ says consumers should ignore offers from suspicious sources for a COVID-19 vaccine, cure, or treatment. Everyone’s rule-of-thumb should be this: if a vaccine becomes available, you won’t hear about it for the first time through an email, online ad, or unsolicited sales pitch.

• Check reviews. Check online reviews for any company offering COVID-19 products or supplies. Avoid companies whose customers have complained about not receiving items. 

There’s other red flags the DOJ says consumers can watch out for, but they’re a bit different from emails or websites selling scarce health and safety products. 

Those include charities or crowdfunding sites soliciting donations in connection with COVID-19; any business, charity, or individual requesting payments or donations in cash, by wire transfer, gift card, or through the mail; and any “investment opportunities” tied to COVID-19, especially those based on claims that a small company’s products or services can help stop the virus.  

For the most up-to-date information on COVID-19, consumers should visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and World Health Organization (WHO) websites. If anything looks fishy and it’s related to the coronavirus, the public is urged to report it to the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) hotline by phone at (1-866-720-5721) or via an online reporting form available here. 

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed a lawsuit against a California marketing company over charges that it deceptively advertised and sold a COVID-19 treatment plan to consumers.

Regulators accuse Golden Sunrise Nutraceutical, Inc. of falsely stating in advertising materials that its “Emergency D-Virus” treatment plan was approved by the FDA and scientifically proven to treat COVID-19. The agency says the defendants kept marketing the product in this way at a price point of $23,000 despite previous warnings.

“We warned the defendants not to falsely market their product as an effective treatment for COVID-19, but they didn’t stop. As this case makes clear, the FTC is prepared to sue companies that continue to make deceptive health claims about COVID-19 or other serious diseases,” said Andrew Smith, the FTC’s director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection.

False claims

In its report, the FTC states that Golden Sunrise Nutraceutical placed advertisements on its website, social media accounts, and billboards to promote its diet supplements. Three of these supplements -- ImunStem, Aktiffvate, and AnterFeerons -- were noted to be “uniquely qualified to treat and modify the course of Coronavirus in CHINA and other countries.”

The company also allegedly promised consumers that symptoms of the virus could be cleared up “within two to four days,” despite no evidence or scientific backing.

In addition to its claims linked to COVID-19, the company was also found to have sold dietary supplements that claimed to treat cancer, Parkinson’s disease, and other serious conditions. These treatments supposedly cost some consumers up to $200,000.

Officials are asking for a preliminary injunction against the defendants and ancillary relief for consumers while its report is processed.

Medicare is putting its subscribers on high alert that scammers are out in force trying to shake down America’s senior citizens with a battery of coronavirus-related swindles.

The scammers are attempting to get consumers’ Medicare numbers, and they accomplish that by saying they’ll take the information in exchange for a product like a face mask. 

The bag of tricks the scammers use include robocalls, text messages, ads, emails, social media posts, and even going door-to-door offering free face masks, free COVID-19 testing kits, cures, and protective equipment. 

What happens if a scammer gets someone’s Medicare number?

The scammers want Medicare numbers for one thing: to benefit themselves. The sad thing is that when that happens, beneficiaries face potential harms. 

“The personal information collected can be used to fraudulently bill Federal health care programs and commit medical identity theft,” the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General warns. 

“If Medicare or Medicaid denies the claim for an unapproved test, the beneficiary could be responsible for the cost.”

How to protect yourself from Medicare fraud

Federal officials in charge of the Medicare program are offering five essential reminders that subscribers can use to keep the fraudsters at bay:

1. Medicare will never contact you for your Medicare number or for any other personal information -- unless you gave them permission in advance to call you.

2. Medicare will never call you to sell you anything. The agency is an insurance provider, nothing more and nothing less.

3. If you get a call from someone who offers you things in exchange for giving them a Medicare number, don’t do it. 

4. Medicare will never visit you at your home.

5. Medicare can’t enroll you over the phone unless you called first.

If at any time something doesn’t appear up to snuff, it’s important to call the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Their toll-free phone number is 1-800-MEDICARE.

The latest count of states ordering people to wear face coverings when they’re out in public reached 42 on Thursday. But despite the upside of masking up, some people are still refusing to do so.

Lenka Koloma, a California resident, picked up on that notion and decided to create a fake government agency -- the Freedom to Breathe Agency. She even went as far as issuing cards that say the holder has a disability that prevents them from wearing a mask. To top it off, some of the cards reportedly bear the seal of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and claim that it’s illegal for any business to ask them to divulge whether their coronavirus condition is positive or negative.

Koloma -- who claims to be an international best-selling author and who cured herself of cancer -- is promoting the cards on her Facebook page and an online shop. In a video talking about the cards, Koloma says that FTBA is all about “taking our rights back,” going to the extreme of saying “we are unstoppable.”

Despite Koloma’s stance on this issue, consumers should know that the cards she produces are not in any way backed by the federal government or carry federal authority.

“The fact is, these cards aren’t issued or endorsed by DOJ, or any other federal agency,” warned Colleen Tressler, a Consumer Education Specialist at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Tressler said that if someone is really concerned about face coverings as they relate to disabilities, they should visit the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) website or call the ADA at 800-514-0301 for the real, official information issued by the agency.

Many purchases made by consumers preparing to shelter in place amid COVID-19 concerns were left unfulfilled, the Federal Trade Commission said Wednesday. In a blog post, the agency said online shopping complaints about items that never arrived rose sharply in April and May. 

"By the week of April 5, reports of unreceived merchandise were almost on par with previous peak numbers from the December 2019 holiday shopping season," the agency said. By May, the figure had doubled. 

The FTC said “opportunistic” scammers took advantage of the increased demand for items like face masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer and launched a number of illegitimate websites. Reports regarding face masks were the most common complaint. 

“People reported online shops claiming to sell the things they desperately needed but could not get,” the FTC said. “Of course, many sellers have had legitimate supply chain problems, but these reports are about no-show orders, not just shipping delays.” 

Be wary of sites selling in-demand goods

The agency said consumers should be aware that, in recent years, scammers have “honed their ability to put up remarkably polished looking websites.”

“They’ve learned to work social media and online advertising to their advantage, and to peel off negative reviews by simply disappearing and popping back up under a new name,” the FTC said. “This is a global problem, since the web gives scammers cheap access to consumers worldwide.” 

The FTC recommends being wary of sites selling items that are in high demand. Consumers can search for company names with the search terms “scam” or “complaints” to help verify if a site is legitimate. 

COVID-19 scams are still spreading in the midst of the pandemic. The FTC has previously warned of robocall scams related to COVID-19 and multi-level marketing companies using the health crisis to sell products they claim can treat or prevent coronavirus. 

In April, the FTC said the coronavirus outbreak led to more than 15,000 fraud complaints. The agency said scams related to COVID-19 have cost consumers nearly $12 million since the beginning of the year.

Federal and state officials are warning consumers that coronavirus (COVID-19) scams are spreading as fast as the virus itself.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed suit in federal court to stop a company it accuses of using a mailer to mislead consumers. The agency says the mailers were sent by Traffic Jam Events, LLC, and were labeled “IMPORTANT COVID-19 STIMULUS DOCUMENTS.” They allegedly directed consumers to “relief headquarters” to “claim these stimulus incentives.” 

The mailers reportedly targeted Florida residents and directed recipients to an address in the state where they could apply in person for benefits.  The impression was clear that going to that location could mean additional federal stimulus payments since the mailer bore the Great Seal of the United States and a mock-up of a stimulus check.

However, those who arrived at the address complained to the FTC they did not find a government office but instead were ushered into a used car sale.

Phony contact tracing calls

Florida, with its large population of seniors, appears to be a hotbed of COVID-19 scams. Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody is warning consumers to be careful when responding to COVID-19 contact tracing calls. 

These tracing calls are real since public health officials are calling up people who may have come in contact with someone with COVID-19. In fact, they are an important tool in efforts to slow the spread of the virus.

But in recent days, there have been reports that some of the people making these contract tracing calls don’t work for the state and are only trying to run various types of scams.

“Unfortunately, we can’t trust the voice on the other end of the phone to always be truthful—even in the face of a deadly pandemic,” Moody said. “I want to encourage all Floridians to engage with legitimate health professionals working to contain the spread of COVID-19, but to be cautious before providing information.”

Moody says you can tell real contact tracers from fakes by the questions they ask. Real contact tracers will limit their questions to your recent travels and contacts, or whether you have displayed symptoms.

A scammer will ask for personal information, such as your date of birth, Social Security number, mother’s maiden name, or other information that can be used to steal your identity. If you get those kinds of questions, Moody says you should immediately hang up.

Not much has been made of it in the regular news cycle, but the number of consumers finding that imposters are using their good name to try filing for unemployment benefits is on the rise. It’s happening so much, in fact, that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is taking over the bullhorn to let everyone know.

As far as scams go, the imposters have proved themselves deft in finding the silver lining inside of the pandemic’s clouds. Knowing that government agencies are operating at half-speed and systems are processing paperwork without an agency’s usual supervision, the imposters are rolling the dice and filing claims blindly, just hoping that their luck will pay off before anyone’s the wiser. 

The people defrauded by the scheme usually find out too late. They learn about the fraud when they get a notice from their state unemployment benefits office or their employer asking them about their assumed application for unemployment.

If this happens to you, it means someone is misusing your personal information, including your Social Security number and date of birth. In fact, no one’s Social Security number is safe from harm. One consumer told the FTC that imposters had used their 1-year old son’s Social Security number.

What to be on the lookout for

The FTC says if it happens to you, don’t hesitate. There are immediate steps you should take to protect both your finances and your credit:

1. Be alert. If any person calls, emails, or texts you and asks you to wire money, send cash, or put money on gift cards, stop right then and there. State unemployment agencies never tell someone to repay money that way. If someone tells you to do that, you have come face to face with a scammer. 

2. Tell your employer about the fraud. Keep a detailed record of who you spoke with and when.

3. Report the fraud to your state unemployment benefits agency. It’s quicker and easier for the state to process the fraud if it is reported online. Keep a record of confirmation emails or case numbers you receive, or if you spoke with someone, keep a record of that. Get names, badge numbers, and jot down times, dates, and what was discussed. 

4. Go to IdentityTheft.gov to report the fraud to the FTC and get help with the next important recovery steps. Here’s where the FTC uses its muscle. The agency can help you place a free, one-year fraud alert on your credit, get you free credit reports, and close any fraudulent accounts that were opened in your name. As a bonus, IdentityTheft.gov can also help you add a free extended fraud alert or credit freeze to your credit report. That’s an important element because it makes it more difficult for an identity thief to open new accounts in your name.

5. Review your credit reports often. For one year, you can check your reports every week for free through AnnualCreditReport.com. This can help you spot any new fraud quickly.

Beware of the money mule scam

Seena Gressin, an attorney in the FTC’s Division of Consumer & Business Education, thinks consumers should take the extra effort to do one other thing. 

“The unemployment payments usually are deposited to accounts the imposters control. But sometimes payments get sent to the real person’s account, instead,” Gressin said.

“If this happens to you, the imposters may call, text, or email to try to get you to send some or all of the money to them. They may pretend to be your state unemployment agency and say the money was sent by mistake. This a money mule scam and participating in one could cause you more difficulties.”

Consumers are using their credit cards less during the pandemic, but scammers are using stolen credit cards a lot more. 

Fidelity National Information Services (FIS), a fraud-monitoring firm, reports that attempted fraudulent transactions rose 35 percent in April, and that trend apparently spilled over into May. The Wall Street Journal reports that the spike in fraud attempts is posing hardships for consumers as well as lenders.  

While banks’ security systems have been robust enough to catch most of the fraud attempts, consumers are on their own and have become more frequent targets of attempts to steal credit card data and personal identifying information (PII) to fuel the ongoing crime spree.

Don’t click on links

The Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) has seen an increase in fraud attempts directed at consumers. It’s advising consumers that telephone calls, emails, and social media posts asking consumers to verify PII are all ruses that scammers are employing during the pandemic.

Emails that promise help with navigating through coronavirus (COVID-19) challenges are almost universally fraudulent.

“Under no circumstances should consumers click on any links or open any attachments from unanticipated emails or texts,” ITRC advises. “COVID-19 scams via phishing emails are going around right now attacking both businesses and consumers.”

The Department of Homeland Security has warned consumers to remain vigilant and be skeptical of unsolicited contacts that appear to come from a trusted source. It recently suggested consumers follow these guidelines to stay out of trouble.

• Avoid clicking on links in unsolicited emails and be wary of email attachments.

• Use trusted sources—such as legitimate, government websites—for up-to-date, fact-based information about COVID-19.

• Do not reveal personal or financial information in an email, and do not respond to email solicitations for this information.

• Verify a charity’s authenticity before making donations. Review the Federal Trade Commission’s page on Charity Scams for more information.

• Review CISA Insights on Risk Management for COVID-19 for more information.

Changes in consumer behavior could slow crime

FIS surveyed more than 1,000 consumers and discovered changes in the way they are banking and paying for things during the pandemic shutdown. The results show an acceleration in the digital transformation of banking and commerce. 

These adjustments, the authors conclude, likely will not be temporary but rather mark a new normal in consumer behavior in a post-COVID-19 marketplace.

Capital One said that trend may be helpful in reining in credit card and other forms of financial fraud. The bank has recently begun a program to help seniors get more comfortable with online banking, which it says is more advanced and secure than ever. 

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has sent warning letters to nearly a dozen companies demanding that they stop making claims about their products’ ability to treat or prevent coronavirus, or touting their ability to help consumers earn back income lost as a result of the health crisis. 

The ten multi-level marketing companies that received warning letters for making health claims, earnings claims, or both types of claims were: 

• doTERRA International

• Pruvit Ventures

• Total Life Changes

• Tranont

• Modere

• Arbonne International

• IDLife

• It Works Marketing

• Rodan & Fields

• Zurvita, Inc.

“MLMs and other companies that distribute their products through networks of distributors are responsible for the product and earnings claims those distributors are making,” Andrew Smith, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in a statement. 

“During this health and economic crisis, we are on the lookout for false income claims for work-at-home opportunities, in addition to spurious health claims that products can treat or prevent COVID-19.”

Bogus claims

In a social media post, one company said:  “Got the coronavirus heebeegeebees? Boost your immunity with this amazing deal!!!!”

Another company claimed in a video posted to social media that their company could help a person who recently lost their job make money quickly. 

“I can tell you that there’s thousands of people that are out of work right now. They’re all looking for a way to go earn money. This is a great stimulus package, because you get to teach somebody how to go earn $1,730 literally in their first 10 days in the business,” the company said. 

Unlawful to make such claims

The FTC noted in its release that no product currently on the market is backed by scientific evidence to substantiate claims that it can treat or prevent COVID-19, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). 

In its letter to doTerra, the FTC emphasized that it’s illegal to advertise a product as being able to prevent, treat, or cure a disease in the absence of “competent and reliable” scientific evidence. 

The agency also said earnings claims can’t be misleading or untruthful. 

″...Claims about the potential to achieve a wealthy lifestyle, career-level income, or significant income are false or misleading if business opportunity participants generally do not achieve such results,” the agency said in its warning letter. 

The coronavirus pandemic has given rise to a number of scams. Scammers have posed as government officials, pretended to have the ability to issue travel and vacation refunds or cancellations, and promoted an Amazon work-from-home scam. 

Earlier this month, the FTC said that scams related to the coronavirus outbreak have cost consumers nearly $12 million dollars since the beginning of the year. 

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said on Friday that the coronavirus outbreak has spurred more than 15,000 fraud complaints, and scams related to the coronavirus have cost consumers nearly $12 million since the beginning of the year. 

Scammers have attempted to profit off of the health crisis in a number of ways, including by posing as government officials, pretending to have the ability to issue travel and vacation refunds or cancellations, or promoting an Amazon work-from-home scam. 

In March, call-screening app YouMail reported a surge in robocall messages pushing coronavirus scams and bogus products. The same month, the FTC sent warning letters to seven companies warning them to stop promoting unapproved products -- including teas, essential oils, and colloidal silver -- that “may violate federal law by making deceptive or scientifically unsupported claims about their ability to treat coronavirus (COVID-19).” 

The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has warned Medicare recipients that scammers have started using the virus as a way to steal Medicare numbers via email and telemarketing schemes. 

“In some cases, they might tell you they'll send you a coronavirus test, masks, or other items in exchange for your Medicare number or personal information,” the agency said in a statement in March. “Be wary of unsolicited requests for your Medicare number or other personal information.”

Justice Department taking action

The Justice Department has asked consumers to report any suspected fraud schemes related to the coronavirus so that it can take the appropriate actions as quickly as possible. The Department said known coronavirus scams include: 

• Individuals and businesses selling fake cures for COVID-19 online and engaging in other forms of fraud;

• Phishing emails from entities posing as the World Health Organization or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention;

• Malicious websites and apps that appear to share Coronavirus-related information to gain and lock access to your devices until payment is received;

• Seeking donations fraudulently for illegitimate or non-existent charitable organizations; and

• Medical providers obtaining patient information for COVID-19 testing and then using that information to fraudulently bill for other tests and procedures.      

"We will use every resource at the government's disposal to act quickly to shut down these most despicable of scammers, whether they are defrauding consumers, committing identity theft, or delivering malware," Assistant Attorney General Jody Hunt said in a statement.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has waived another warning flag in the face of telecom service providers that may be complicit in robocall scams related to COVID-19.

On Friday, the FTC sent letters to nine Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service providers as well as other companies warning them that “assisting and facilitating” illegal telemarketing or robocalls related to the pandemic is strictly against the law. 

“It’s never good business for VoIP providers and others to help telemarketers make illegal robocalls that scam people,” said FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection Director Andrew Smith. “But it’s especially bad when your company is helping telemarketers exploiting fears about the coronavirus to spread disinformation and perpetrate scams.”

The staff sent the letters to the following companies: 

• VoIPMax; 

• SipJoin Holding, Corp.; 

• iFly Communications; 

• Third Rock Telecom; 

• Bluetone Communications, LLC; 

• VoIP Terminator, Inc., also known as BLMarketing; 

• J2 Web Services, Inc.; 

• VoxBone US LLC; and 

• Comet Media, Inc.

The FTC gave those companies little time to prepare a defense, demanding a description of “the specific actions you have taken to ensure your company’s services are not being used in Coronavirus/COVID-19 robocall schemes” by March 30, 2020. 

Carrying telemarketing a little too far

In black and white, the FTC’s letters claimed that the nine service providers were using practices that “prey upon consumer fear of the pandemic to perpetrate scams or disseminate disinformation.”

If the agency’s allegations are true, then the telemarketers’ actions would violate the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR). The rule states that “assisting and facilitating” a robocall operation is illegal “unless the person receiving the call has given their express written permission to receive robocalls from the person or company making those calls,” according to FTC official Leslie Fair. 

And, as the FTC reminded each of the nine new offenders, any company that “consciously avoided knowing” is just as guilty as a company preying on the consumer on purpose.

Circling the wagons

This move by the FTC follows a major takedown of VoIP provider Globex Telecom Inc. Just last December, the Commission, along with the State of Ohio, was successful in getting a federal court to halt Globex’ VoIP operations. Allegedly, Globex played a lead role in robocalling consumers and pushing a credit card interest reduction scam that wound up duping consumers to the tune of millions of dollars.

Now, with help from the Department of Justice and anti-robocall companies like Nomorobo, USTelecom, and Somos, Inc., the FTC is starting to move things forward quickly. “Combating illegal robocalls is a top priority for the FTC,” the agency reminded each of the new offenders.

It’s possible that there are other companies still out there perpetrating the COVID-related robo scams. If you get a similar robocall, the FTC asks that you take action by calling 1-877-FTC-HELP (382-4357). 

Scams directed against consumers usually are aimed at robbing them financially, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning that some coronavirus (COVID -19) scams could result in victims’ death.

The agency has expressed concern at the large number of scams purporting to offer diagnosis, treatment, and even a cure for the virus. The FDA points out that only clinically administered tests can detect the virus and, as yet, there are no approved treatments or cures.

“Some people and companies are trying to profit from this pandemic by selling unproven and illegally marketed products that make false claims, such as being effective against the coronavirus,” the FDA said in a press release. “These fraudulent products that claim to cure, treat, or prevent COVID-19 haven't been evaluated by the FDA for safety and effectiveness and might be dangerous to you and your family.”

Warning letters

In early March, the FDA joined the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in sending warning letters to seven companies that the agencies said were marketing unapproved products, deceptively claiming they could treat the coronavirus.

The FDA has now ramped up its level of concern as scammers have become bolder in their claims and target more people. The agency is particularly concerned that products marketed with deceptive and misleading claims might stop or delay people who buy them from getting appropriate medical attention if they get the virus. That, the FDA says, could result in serious illness and even death.

“It's likely that the products do not do what they claim, and the ingredients in them could cause adverse effects and could interact with, and potentially interfere with, essential medications,” the FDA said.

Red flags

Here are some red flags that could indicate that an ad or promotion for a coronavirus product is false or misleading:

• It claims a food item or dietary supplement can protect against COVID-19

• It offers a test you can take at home to check for the presence of the virus

• It offers a drug to protect against or cure the virus

• It offers any type of vaccine

Remember, only medical professionals can treat the virus; so far, there is no silver bullet that can kill it. Fortunately, the majority of cases of the coronavirus are relatively mild, with symptoms similar to a cold or the flu.

However, mild cases have been known to get worse, so seeking medical attention early improves the odds of a speedy recovery. 

The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is warning Medicare recipients that they can expect to be targets of assorted scams related to the coronavirus (COVID-19). If they haven’t been yet, they probably soon will be.

In an alert issued on its website, the agency said scammers have already started using the virus as a means to steal Medicare numbers. These schemes are being launched through email and telemarketing.

“In some cases, they might tell you they'll send you a coronavirus test, masks, or other items in exchange for your Medicare number or personal information,” the agency said in a statement. “Be wary of unsolicited requests for your Medicare number or other personal information.”

In fact, if anyone calls you or sends an email requesting your Medicare or Social Security number, you can be sure it’s a scam. You should only give your Medicare number to participating Medicare pharmacists, primary and specialty care doctors, or people you trust to work with Medicare on your behalf.

Points to remember

Medicare further stresses to consumers that:

• Medicare will never contact you for your Medicare Number or other personal information unless you’ve given them permission in advance.

• Medicare will never call you to sell you anything.

• You may get calls from people promising you things if you give them a Medicare Number. Don’t do it. 

• Medicare will never visit you at your home.

• Medicare can’t enroll you over the phone unless you called first.

Spoofing emails

Scammers are not limiting their impersonation to government agencies; they are even posing as clergy in an effort to steal money. Over the weekend, Rev. David Miller, senior minister of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Fairfax, in suburban Washington, DC, warned his congregation that scammers are impersonating him in an effort to raise money.

“Emails recently went out with my name on them asking for money or gift cards,” Miller wrote in an email to church members. “They are NOT from me. They are spoofs and should be deleted.”

Miller said this kind of fraud is becoming more frequent, and ministers' emails are a particular target. He said he would never reach out to individual congregants asking them to give money or gift cards directly to him.

“In most cases, the scammers will use a different email address than that minister's legitimate email address, so check that first,” he advised.

It’s good practice -- especially in the post-COVID-19 world -- to be highly skeptical of all unsolicited communications. Instead of responding directly, either ignore them or contact the agency or individual directly to ask if the message is legitimate.

Riding the wave of the coronavirus epidemic, hackers are also going viral with email campaigns containing fake HIV results and coronavirus-related information. One wrong click from a consumer can lead to their computer getting infected with malware.

The latest preying on sympathizers was sussed out by cybersecurity company Proofpoint, whose researchers uncovered cybercriminals impersonating Vanderbilt University Medical Center. 

“This low volume campaign had top targeted industries: global insurance, healthcare, and pharmaceutical organizations, but others were targeted as well,” Proofpoint’s Sherrod Degrippo said. “If successful and (the malware) is installed, attackers can run programs and access victims’ data, including sensitive personal and financial information.”

What to keep an eye out for

Like with many cyber scams, attachments are a giant red flag. So is incorrect spelling. In this situation, the emails purport to come from “Vanderbit Medical” and have the subject line “Test result of medical analysis.” 

The body of the email urges recipients to open up a Microsoft Excel attachment titled “TestResults.xlsb,” which supposedly has the recipient’s HIV results. Unfortunately, that spreadsheet file is filled with malicious code that can shut down a user’s computer.

No sleep for the creeps

At ConsumerAffairs, it’s pretty typical to see phishing expeditions trying to capitalize on anything that’s getting a bump in the news or life cycles -- tax time IRS scams, holiday gift card scams, you name it. And while this attempt to profit off an epidemic seems unethical, consumers have to keep in mind that scammers have no ethics.

“This latest campaign serves as a reminder that health-related lures didn’t start and won’t stop with the recent Coronavirus-themed lures we observed,” Degrippo said. “They are a constant tactic as attackers recognize the utility of the health-related ‘scare factor.’”

If you’re asking if there’s some way to keep this from happening, Degrippo says nothing beats a cyber creep like good old-fashioned attentiveness. He signed off with a word of advice for consumers. 

“We encourage users to treat health-related emails with caution, especially those that claim to have sensitive health-related information. Sensitive health-related information is typically safely transmitted using secured messaging portals, over the phone, or in-person. If you receive an email that claims to have sensitive health-related information, don’t open the attachments. Instead, visit your medical provider’s patient portal directly, call your doctor, or make an appointment to directly confirm any medical diagnosis or test results,” he said.

There’s nothing like a good virus to bring opportunists out into the open. Facebook has made a smart move by locking out coronavirus carpetbagging ads that are trying to profit on the pandemic.

Via a statement to Business Insider, Facebook announced its ban on any ad run on its platform that dares to mention the word “coronavirus” in relation to prevention or remedy, as well as any ads which attempt to “create a sense of urgency” about the outbreak as a way to line their pockets. That ad ban also includes Facebook marketplace, where almost anything for sale is fair game.

The social media giant is also going the extra mile by putting valuable, legitimate information in front of any user who searches for “coronavirus.” In the past, the first things that would’ve popped up might’ve been groups, pages, and posts; now, the first thing that pops up is a box asking if you’re “Looking for coronavirus info? See the most up-to-date information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to help you stay healthy and help prevent the spread of the virus.” 

Facebook has also vetted content from medical schools and health organizations and is also making that available to its users.

Amazon steps up protections

Seeing other world citizens donning masks to help guard against the virus, you can imagine that there’s been quite the run on items like masks, hand wipes, and other preventative products. And where better to buy them than Amazon, right?

The shopping mecca’s brass also made moves to prevent price gouging and false claims -- anything that tries to make a psychological play to get consumers to buy something they wouldn’t ordinarily purchase. As part of that sweep, it has blocked or taken down more than a million products that made what it perceives to be false claims about the virus and suspended or deleted deals from sellers it thought had raised prices unjustifiably.

Waiting on Google response

There’s no official word on what steps or bans Google has implemented, and it might be because it simply has so many tentacles that could be affected -- apps, YouTube, Gmail, Android devices, Google Assistant, wearables, et al -- with all the ads and third-party content that monetize those products and services.

The company is typically proactive in situations like this, and it’s safe to assume that it won’t be long before it, too, takes the situation head-on.

Apparently, with nothing else better to do, cybercrooks have decided to ride the wave of fear connected to the coronavirus outbreak in hopes of fleecing some consumers.

Reports are starting to pop up that phishers are sending out malicious links and PDFs masquerading as information consumers can use to protect themselves from the virus. In Los Angeles County, public health officials put the public on notice that a letter to locals about a coronavirus in Carson City was completely bogus. 

North of Los Angeles, the school system raised a red flag on false social media reports about the outbreak. School districts in San Diego and Arizona also put out a similar alert. 

What to be on the outlook for

The cyber security firm Mimecast took to Twitter to report it had detected one of the phishing emails, and it read like this:

Dear Sir

Go through the attached document on safety measures regarding the spreading of the corona virus. This little measure can save you.

Use the link below to download (followed by a link to a PDF entitled “Safety Measures”.

Symptoms Common symptoms include fever, cough, shortness of breath, and breathing difficulties.

Regard

Dr. (name redacted)

Specialist wuhan-virus-advisory

(Company/practice redacted)

In ComputerWeekly’s coverage of the scam, security software company Kaspersky reported that its researchers had come across at least 10 different messages, some with a movie file (mp4) or a Microsoft Word file (.docx). 

IBM’s X-Force uncovered another that appeared to be sent from a disability welfare service provider in Japan, simply saying that there have been reports of coronavirus patients in the Gifu prefecture in Japan. It urges the reader to view an attached document, but clicking on the link allows hackers access to their system and information. 

Don’t put your trust in an email or a social media post

Swindles riding on the back of a health outbreak or a major disaster aren’t going away anytime soon.

"Unfortunately we see this often in geopolitical events and world events," Francis Gaffney, the director of threat intelligence at Mimecast, told Wired. "This is when cybercriminals seek opportunities to use the confusion that vulnerable people have. They’ll click on links because they’re not sure."

When a consumer gets an email or sees a social media post that offers a solution, help, etc., the smartest thing to do is go all the way up the food chain and contact the federal agency or topmost business related to the situation BEFORE opening any attachment, responding to any email, or putting any charge on a credit card. In short, stay vigilant.

“One fascinating aspect of phishing and online malware infections (including ransomware), is that the same concept is generally true,” Dan Lohrmann, Chief Security Officer & Chief Strategist at Security Mentor Inc. told GovernmentTechnology. If the bad actors are not successful in getting the user to click on Coronavirus-labeled content today, they will be back tomorrow with a new technique.”

In the coronavirus case, the best place to go is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It has a complete rundown of everything related to the virus and can answer any questions you might have.

“So we all must prepare now and spread the word,” Lohrmann concluded.