Be careful with electronic payment and vaccine cards
Q: The IRS is mailing second Economic Impact Payments as a debit card, and vaccine recipients are posting on social media a copy of their vaccination card. Each may be a path for scams. What advice does the Better Business Bureau have on these cards?
A: The IRS and the Treasury Department are delivering second Economic Impact Payments as part of the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021.
Many Americans already received their stimulus payments either by direct deposit to their bank account or in the form of a mailed check. However, the debit cards are being sent to some consumers for whom the Internal Revenue Service did not have bank account information on file. The Treasury Department announced the distribution of EIP cards follows the millions of payments already made by direct deposit and the ongoing mailing of paper checks and are part of the department’s and IRS’s plan to deliver Economic Impact Payments as rapidly as possible.
Consumers who have not received payment should refer to the Get My Payment site on IRS.gov, for more information and remain vigilant to ensure that the card they receive is legitimate.
TIPS ON HOW TO RECOGNIZE A LEGITIMATE EIP CARD
EIP cards are being sent in a white envelope with the U.S. Department of the Treasury seal. The Visa name will appear on the front of the card; the back of the card has the name of the issuing bank, MetaBank, N.A.
The welcome kit explains more about the Economic Impact Payment card. Please go to EIPcard.com for more information and to see a sample image of the card.
ONCE THE CARD HAS BEEN VERIFIED
› Activate the card by calling the number provided, setting a four-digit PIN.
› Sign the card.
› Keep the card in a safe place.
› Do not share the information on the card with anyone.
› Use the card anywhere Visa cards are accepted and/or get cash back at a retailer or ATM. Note that most transactions are free, but certain uses could incur fees. For more questions, visit EIPcard.com/FAQ.
BBB warns that scammers may try to text, call or email you, trying to convince you to give up the card number or your personal information. Report any phishing or scam attempts to the IRS and file a report with BBB Scam Tracker to warn others not to fall for the scam.
If you have not received your Economic Impact Payment, you can track your funds using the Get My Payment tracking tool (rs.gov/coronavirus/getmy-payment).
For more information, read BBB’s Tips on Economic Impact Payments. bbb.org.
VACCINATION CARDS
Got your COVID-19 vaccine? Great job! But don’t share a photo of your vaccination card on social media. The self-identifying information on it makes you vulnerable to identity theft and can help scammers create phony versions.
WHAT TO WATCH OUT FOR
You got your COVID-19 inoculation, and you are excited to share the good news and encourage others to do the same. You take a selfie holding your vaccination card and post it to Facebook, Instagram or another social media platform.
Unfortunately, your card has your full name and birthday on it, as well as information about where you got your vaccine. If your social media privacy settings aren’t set high, you may be giving valuable information away for anyone to use.
Sharing your personal information isn’t the only issue. Scammers in Great Britain were caught selling fake vaccination cards on eBay and TikTok. It’s only a matter of time before similar cons come to the United States and Canada. Posting photos of your card can help provide scammers with the information they can use to create and sell phony ones.
SHARE SAFELY ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Share your vaccine sticker or use a profile frame instead. If you want to post about your vaccine, there are safer ways to do it. You can share a photo of your vaccine sticker or set a frame around your profile picture.
Review your security settings. 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.
Be wary of answering popular social media prompts. Sharing your vaccine photo is just the latest social trend. Think twice before participating in other viral personal posts, such as listing all the cars you’ve owned, favorite songs and top 10 TV shows. Some of these “favorite things” are commonly used passwords or security questions.
For more information about privacy concerns on social media, see BBB’s Scam Alert on Facebook quizzes and like farming, visit bbb.org/articles.