Phishing and Scam Rates Increase as a Result of COVID-19
Scammers are Taking Advantage of Fear Surrounding COVID-19
Researchers have discovered a spike in websites using the Coronavirus as a way to get your personal information. Some of the sites are promoting awareness and prevention tips, requesting donations for victims, offering advice on treatment or are promoting mobile apps to track the virus in real time. Truth is, many of these sites and emails contain malicious attachments or are infected with ransomware.
What Can I Do To Protect Myself?
- Don't click links from sources you don't know. Opening links or attachments can download malicious software onto your computer.
- Never provide your social security number, account number, pin numbers or passwords to anyone over the phone or internet.
- Watch for emails claiming to be from reputable sources such as the Center for Disease Control (CDC). For the most up to date information regarding this issue, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website, or the World Health Organization (WHO) website.
- Enroll in our Free Card Protection Services to receive alerts on credit and/or debit card activity.
- Enroll in SavvyMoney through our Midcoast Mobile App to receive credit score and report monitoring, email alerts and more!
For more information regarding the increase of fraud through email and malicious attachments, see this article published by the Federal Trade Commission. The Maine Credit Union League has also released information about Ransomware Sites targeting Android users.
