Some lovely people have been hard at work using COVID to scam people out of their money and to be honest, they’ve really been good at it. According to the Federal Trade Commission, more than 200,000 Americans have lost a sum of just about $145 million to them since the start of the year. Here are some of the biggest rackets to look out for so you don’t end up being one.
- Fake contact tracers. Contact tracing is huge for keeping the spread of the virus down. That is...when it’s real. Real calls about contact tracing will ask for info like your name, address, and date of birth. Illegitimate calls will ask for payment, financial information, insurance, and Social Security numbers. You don’t need to pay to
- Robocalls. A recent survey found one in five people have received a robocall regarding COVID. While it’s already a red flag that they called instead of text, here are some other things to listen for if the call hits your phone. They typically falsely claim to be offering COVID treatment, testing, or financial assistance and direct you to press “1” on your phone. If you hit that button you’ll end up getting connected with a scammer and a bad day.
- Embedded links in texts. Be on the lookout for “smishing” in your inbox. These messages come in the form of fake “package pending” notices and texts claiming to be government workers. A good rule of thumb is to never click on links or download attachments from texts or emails without confirming the source.
Source:LifeHacker