Scammers’ latest trick: preying on monkeypox fears to steal from you

Scammers are impersonating the NHS in an attempt to steal thousands of pounds from people worried about the spread of monkeypox.

Banks have warned that criminals are taking advantage of the uncertainty surrounding the infection and members of the public have received fake texts claiming to be from the NHS warning that they have been in close contact with monkeypox.

The message tells victims to order a test and pay a small fee, but when the target enters their card details fraudsters are able to steal large sums.

Baz Thompson of Metro Bank said a rising number of its customers had been targeted. “Fraudsters are very quick to jump on anything topical in the news and medical scams are common because they prey on vulnerability,” he said.

Scammers use the stolen card details to spend thousands of pounds online or sell them to other criminals on the “dark web”. In particularly sinister cases the criminal will call the victim, using the card details to pretend to be from their bank.

They then convince the vic tim they are being scammed by a third party and must move their savings into a “safe account”, which in reality is the fraudster’s.

The tactics are almost identical to those used in the widespread NHS Covid test scam, which cost victims thousands of pounds each during the pandemic. The end of free Covid testing in March gave the scam new impetus and the average victim lost more than £5,800, according to Santander.

Monkeypox cases in Britain are still rare, with fewer than 200 reported so far, but those with symptoms have been told to isolate at home. Experts have warned that rising cases will help scammers target concerned members of the public.

Paul Davis of TSB said: “With monkeypox currently in the news, it’s important to remain vigilant to unsolicited communication as criminals will pounce on any opportunity to target you.” Experts said the UK Health Security Agency, the national body responsible for monitoring monkeypox cases, would never need to take payment or card details. Mr Thompson added: “If you are being pressured to act quickly, an alarm bell should be sounding in your head, as it is very likely to be a scam.”