Don’t let the Covid scammers infect you

IT’S A sad fact of life that major crises always bring out the scammers and the scumbags who would seek to exploit the vulnerable for a fast buck. Coronavirus has been no different. The latest lockdown coupled with excitement over the roll- out of a vaccine over the next few months has proved the ideal breeding ground. New frauds are popping up daily and spreading faster than Covid- 19. Not only do they cost us money, which many can sorely afford to lose, in the current climate they are more invidious than ever – especially around the vaccine.

Daily Express reader Joan, 74, from Hartlepool fell for what I believe is going to be one of the most common frauds over the coming months. She received an email purporting to be from the NHS stating that she had been identified as eligible for vaccination and had a legal obligation to put herself on the waiting list. Joan was directed to click on a link in order to do so and taken to what looked like a genuine NHS website containing official- looking logos and other information.

She then completed a form which asked for her name, address, telephone number, date of birth and national insurance number.

The site then asked her to confirm, “for security purposes”, what her place of birth was and her mother’s maiden name. Finally, she was asked to make payment of a £ 10 administration fee.

Afterwards, she belatedly realised she had fallen victim to a scam.

Her son Garry checked her credit file, revealing there had been three searches under her name – the precursor to a request for credit – but, fortunately, no credit cards or loans had yet been applied for.

Joan is fortunate, she has only lost

£ 10, but it could have been a great deal worse. I have now advised Joan to take three steps.

Report the scam to ActionFraud UK; check if any security questions attached to any of her online accounts refer to her place of birth or mother’s maiden name and, if so, warn her bank; and check her bank statements and credit file every month from now on to make sure no one has taken out credit in her name.

Sadly such vaccine scams are common, and can come via text or email so be vigilant, and warn elderly or vulnerable relatives, who may be most at risk, to watch out.