COVID-19 scams

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COVID-19 scams are scams whose cover story primarily relies on the existence of the COVID-19 pandemic. They have been reported in multiple countries, primarily the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.

Within the United Kingdom there were many instances of companies contracted to provide COVID-19 testing kits and personal protective equipment (PPE), when the companies had direct ties to those in the UK parliament.

COVID-19 scam phone calls in UK; heatmap[1]

Initiation[edit]

COVID-19 scams are initiated in a variety of ways, such as by robocalls, emails, fake blog and social media posts[2] and text messaging.[3] Researchers found that fear of COVID-19 and anxiety increased the success of phishing scams.[4]

Types of scams[edit]

Benefit/grant scams[edit]

In this variation of COVID-19 scams, the fraudster claims that the victim is eligible for a COVID-19 benefit payment. This scam is a derivative of the advance-fee scam, where the scammer will ask the victim for a small payment in return for the 'benefit'. The scammer will then ask for further payments under the guise of problems, until the victim refuses to pay any further.[5][6][7][8][9]

Authority impersonation scams[edit]

The United Nations WHO has issued a warning that fraudsters posing as employees of the WHO were attempting to gain personal information through phishing emails and fake help lines.[10]

COVID-19 vaccination scams[edit]

In this variation, the fraudster will offer to sell the victim a 'COVID-19 vaccine' or treatment. Victims who fall for this scam reveal their personal information and payment information to the scammer. In one reported incident, victims in the UK were sent a text message purporting to be from the National Health Service which claimed that they were now eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, but needed to fill their personal details into an online phishing form to book a place on the program. Information lost by the victims included their debit card information, which was then used to withdraw funds from the victim's bank account. COVID-19 vaccination scams have been reported in various countries including the United Kingdom,[11] United States[12] and Singapore.[13][14][15][16][17][18]

COVID-19 testing scams[edit]

In this variation of COVID-19 scams, the fraudster claims they are authorized testing site that could offer COVID-19 test. But it require people to offer their health-related information. US department of Health and Human Services sent fraud alert to the public about fraud schemes.[19]

COVID-19 related stock scams[edit]

In the United States, victims were persuaded to buy stocks in companies which were claimed to be about to release a 'miracle cure' for COVID-19 through posts in Facebook.[20] The Independent reported that online adverts claimed to sell "vaccine bonds" purportedly linked to the US drug company and COVID-19 vaccine manufacturer Pfizer, which were sold with a minimum of US$10,000 investment. Pfizer confirmed it had no links to these bonds. [21]

As of mid-December 2020, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has suspended trading in 36 companies which claimed to have access to COVID-19 related materials such as testing kits and treatments.[20]

United Kingdom Fraud[edit]

The first published incident was in May 2020, where a healthcare firm was contracted to produce COVID-19 testing kits, however there was no competitive process to the contract and the healthcare firm hired a Conservative MP Owen Paterson as a consultant.[22] Subsequent contracts worth £1.7 billion to have been handed out without due process, prioritising those with connections within the government.[23]

Further issues appeared as there were issues with some of the masks purchased, leading to the removal of fifty million masks, a £252 million contract, as they did not meet the health standards provided by the NHS. In December 2020, a company was found to have provided £122 million worth of gowns that weren't used due to the slow approval process, which was hampered due to investigations into the companies origins, as it had been formed 6 weeks prior to the contract.

Losses[edit]

According to the Federal Trade Commission, from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to April 30, 2020, US$13.44M was lost in total due to coronavirus fraud.[24]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Covid 19 scam phone calls in UK; heatmap". Retrieved November 16, 2021.
  2. ^ Bellon, Tina (January 5, 2021). "A COVID-19 shot for $150? Online scams surge as slow vaccine rollout frustrates". Reuters. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  3. ^ Brown, Aaron (January 1, 2021). "Make sure everyone you know is aware of this dangerous NHS COVID-19 scam". Express.co.uk. Archived from the original on December 31, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  4. ^ Abroshan, Hossein; Devos, Jan; Poels, Geert; Laermans, Eric (2021). "COVID-19 and Phishing: Effects of Human Emotions, Behaviour, and Demographics on the Success of Phishing Attempts During the Pandemic". IEEE Access. 9: 121916–121929. Bibcode:2021IEEEA...9l1916A. doi:10.1109/ACCESS.2021.3109091. hdl:1854/LU-8720798. S2CID 237473869.
  5. ^ "4 Covid-19 scams you should look out for right now". Salisbury Journal. January 10, 2021. Archived from the original on January 11, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  6. ^ "COVID-19: Warning over texts offering fake 'third lockdown' HMRC grant". Sky News. Archived from the original on January 12, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  7. ^ "Beware fraud and scams during Covid-19 pandemic fraud". www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk. Archived from the original on January 18, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  8. ^ Bianca, Kerjan (January 13, 2021). "Avoiding COVID-19 vaccine scams". KRDO. Archived from the original on January 13, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  9. ^ "Public warned against Covid-19 vaccine scams in UK". Hindustan Times. January 9, 2021. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  10. ^ "UN health agency warns against coronavirus COVID-19 criminal scams". February 29, 2020. Archived from the original on March 8, 2020. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  11. ^ "Covid-19: Police warning over vaccine scam messages". BBC News. January 6, 2021. Archived from the original on January 14, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  12. ^ Skiba, Katherine. "Vaccine Scams Rise Amid Nationwide Roll-Out". AARP. Archived from the original on January 14, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  13. ^ Iau, Jean (January 8, 2021). "MOH warns of SMS scams as Singapore begins Covid-19 vaccination drive". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on January 10, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  14. ^ Kharpal, Arjun (January 13, 2021). "Scammers are claiming to sell Covid-19 vaccines on the dark web for up to $1,000 worth of bitcoin". CNBC. Archived from the original on January 14, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  15. ^ Meadows, Sam (January 8, 2021). "Warnings over coronavirus vaccine scams used to steal personal data". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on January 15, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  16. ^ "Health experts warn of potential Covid-19 vaccine scam phone calls". NBC News. December 16, 2020. Archived from the original on January 19, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  17. ^ "5 Things to Know about COVID-19 Vaccine Scams". Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  18. ^ "Fraud Alert: COVID-19 Scams". December 24, 2020. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  19. ^ "Fraud Alert: COVID-19 Scams". Office of Inspector General | Government Oversight | U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. December 24, 2020. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  20. ^ a b Tompor, Susan. "Rising cases of COVID-19 stock scams threaten investors". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on January 1, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  21. ^ "Scammers target savers with fake Covid-19 'vaccine bonds', claiming they are backed by Pfizer". The Independent. January 13, 2021. Archived from the original on January 14, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  22. ^ Neate, Rupert; Garside, Juliette; Lawrence, Felicity; Evans, Rob (May 11, 2020). "Healthcare firm advised by Owen Paterson won £133m coronavirus testing contract unopposed". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  23. ^ "UK government paid £1.7bn to private groups for coronavirus contracts". www.ft.com. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  24. ^ USA Today - 10 COVID-19 scams spreading right now that people are falling for Archived February 13, 2021, at the Wayback Machine. USA Today. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
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