COVID Vaccinations are Free - Be Scam Aware
Published: 6th Jan 2021
With the government rolling out vaccination programme for COVID 19 there have been reports of scamming. taking place.
There have been national reports of that text messages about the COVID -19 vaccines have been sent out to citizens including links to fake NHS websites that asked recipients for the following information:
- Name
- Date of Birth
- Address
- Payments card details
- Proof of address
The vaccines are FREE and you would never be asked for payment information.
Protect yourself from scams
Scams can come in many forms and is an incredibly sophisticated crime, making it more difficult to distinguish genuine messages from the fake.
Do not open attachments or click on links in emails or texts from senders you don’t know.
- Never give out personal information, financial details or passwords in response to an email, text or phone call without verifying that the person is who they claim to be.
- Block any numbers that arouse suspicion.
- Set up spam filters on all of your accounts.
- Always go to a website directly, by typing out the address yourself, when logging into an account.
- Look out for fake websites by sense-checking the domain name.
- Keep an eye out for numerous spelling mistakes in messages, these are normally linked to phishing emails and texts.
We all make mistakes and these days the scams can be incredibly convincing. If you think you, or someone you know has been a victim of online fraud:
- Let your bank know what’s happened immediately.
- Report the offence to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or via their website https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/
- The new COVID Fraud Hotline (0800 587 5030) has also been set up by in partnership with Crimestoppers to enable individuals to report fraud within the public sector during the pandemic. There is also an online reporting feature which can be found here: http://covidfraudhotline.org
Further information on the top 4 Scams in regards to COVID - 19 can be found in the following leaflet: