Scammers take advantage of COVID

Data from Scamwatch shows Australians have been fleeced out of $8.4 million since the outbreak of COVID. As unbelievable as it is, crooks have taken advantage of the pandemic with a whole variety of coronavirus-related scams.

Vaccination scams are the latest trap doing the rounds. These involve emails, texts or unexpected phone calls requesting payment for vaccines or early access to vaccines. There have even been scams offering to mail vaccines – for a fee, bogus investment opportunities in the Pfizer vaccine, and fake surveys related to vaccines that offer prizes or early access.

Vaccines are a hot topic right now, so it’s no surprise unscrupulous crooks are trying to hook us in. Scammers send messages that appear to be from well-known businesses like banks, insurance providers, telcos and even the government. And at times like the present, it’s understandable most of us will want to take a look.

The catch is that these messages all use various excuses around COVID-19 to ask for your personal and financial information, or lure you into opening dodgy email links or attachments. You may even be asked for payment for a fake service or something you can get for free – like a coronavirus vaccine.

The common thread is that scammers hope we have let down our guard. But the last thing any of us need right now is to lose money to crooks.   

The scams may have changed during the pandemic but the basic rules to keep your money safe remain the same. Don’t provide your personal, banking or superannuation details to strangers. Never respond to unsolicited messages and calls that ask for personal or financial details, even if the caller claims to be a from a reputable organisation or government authority — just press delete or hang up.

When you’re online, don’t click on hyperlinks in unexpected text/social media messages or emails, even if it appears to come from a trusted source. If you’re unsure if an email is the real deal or a scam, hover your mouse over the sender’s email link to see where it was really sent from.

In these uncertain times, a healthy dose of skepticism can help keep your money safe. If you think you’ve lost money to a scam get in touch with your bank straight away.