Scam text messages claim you’re eligible for COVID vaccine
Scammers are attempting to extort money from victims by claiming they are eligible for a COVID vaccine and luring them to fraudulent websites asking for money. IN many cases, scammers are pretending to be from the UK’s NHS.
As the COVID vaccines begin to roll out across the world, most countries are taking a top-down approach whereby elderly people and those deemed “at risk” are given a higher priority when receiving the vaccine.
However, cyber-crooks are exploiting this waiting period for the mainstream population by sending out malicious phishing messages through email, WhatsApp and SMS, claiming that the recipient is now eligible to receive the vaccine. The messages include links the recipient is told to click to get the vaccine.
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In the UK, scammers are claiming to be from the NHS and sending recipients to spoof NHS websites.
NHS: We have identified that your are eligible to apply for your vaccine. For more information and to apply, follow here: LINK REMOVED
The messages are fake, and the spoof website these links direct to is designed to trick visitors into parting with sensitive personal information which can then be used to commit identity theft, or worse, used to access a visitor’s bank account.
In the UK, victims are sent to a convincing looking website that replicates the real NHS website, making these scams particularly dangerous.
Fortunately potential victims can easily spot these scams using the below simple tips –
1. Don’t trust messages or webpages with grammar and spelling mistakes.
2. If the link doesn’t lead to an official website (e.g. NHS.uk) belonging to a trusted entity, then don’t trust it and don’t enter any information into it. In the messages above, the website address above doesn’t belong to the NHS.
3. And most importantly, you don’t need to pay for a vaccine, nor do you need to provide any financial information, including debit card information or online banking details.
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It is also worth noting that the NHS (or anyone else) won’t require you send a text message to confirm you want the vaccine. These scams will try and trick people into receiving expensive text message subscriptions. The same applies to calling premium phone numbers or pressing keys on your keypad.
If you’re unsure whether a communication is genuine, don’t trust it and call your respective health entity or doctor’s surgery directly.