Fake vaccines sold online
Homeland Security Investigations and Interpol are warning people to be “extra vigilant” about buying alleged COVID-19 vaccines and treatments online.
Criminal groups are producing, selling and distributing fake vaccines that not only don’t protect against the coronavirus, but also pose a serious health hazard if they’re injected or ingested, authorities said.
These products aren’t tested, safety-checked or regulated — unlike legitimate vaccines, which are not for sale and are strictly administered and distributed by national health care regulators.
“Counterfeit vaccines threaten the health of consumers who are duped by nefarious actors seeking to exploit the pandemic situation for financial gain,” HSI Assistant Director Steve Francis said in a statement. “HSI and its law enforcement partners will vigorously investigate and seek prosecution for criminals taking advantage of the public’s quest for COVID-19 vaccinations and those who endanger the lives of the very people the vaccines are intended to protect.”
Interpol Secretary General Jurgen Stock warned the public to be “extra vigilant” about the scams, saying, “Anyone ordering a vaccine online rather than obtaining it from their national provider will be buying a fake product.”
“From the very beginning of the pandemic, criminals have preyed on people’s fears in order to make fast cash,” Stock said in a statement. “The networks behind these crimes have global ambitions. No country or region can fight this type of crime alone. Interpol is assisting law enforcement around the world to both identify criminal networks and to dismantle them.”
After a global alert Interpol issued late last year, the world police body recently announced the first internationally linked arrests and seizures in connection with fake vaccines after criminal networks were disrupted in China and South Africa.
Interpol also has been receiving information about fake-vaccine distribution and scam attempts targeting nursing homes, as well as criminals who set up illicit websites claiming to be legitimate national or world organizations offering pre-orders of COVID-19 vaccines, Interpol said.
Using trademark logos of major pharmaceutical companies producing approved vaccines, the fake websites are suspected of being used to obtain sensitive information such as usernames, passwords or credit card numbers, or to dupe victims into giving charitable donations in bitcoins or other forms of payment.
As of last Thursday, HSI had made 651 seizures, arrested eight people and had 27 websites removed — all related to counterfeit vaccines and treatments.
To report suspected criminal activity or fraudulent schemes related to the COVID-19 pandemic, email Covid19fraud@dhs.gov.