Armies of volunteers around the world are supporting the vulnerable and those in need. Unfortunately, this period has also seen an increase in the number of cases of fraud disguised as charity: scammers are not missing the opportunity to exploit the crisis for their own gain.
Back in February 2020, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warned: “Scammers are playing on fears related to the coronavirus. They create websites to sell fake goods, send fraudulent emails and text messages, and post on social media to lure you into giving them your money and personal information.” These schemes not only cost you money, but also prevent real charities from receiving donations.
In this article, we will discuss the main scenarios of fraud related to the coronavirus and charity, what to be wary of, and how to avoid falling for the tricks of malicious actors.
What does charity fraud look like?
Many of the schemes that scammers are using now are far from new: they are classic cyberattacks, with the only difference being that they now use the coronavirus as a theme. Cyberattacks are malicious attempts to hack into an information system belonging to a person or organization in order to gain a certain benefit at the expense of the victim. There are two common types of charity fraud:
- Schemes targeting a wide audience;
- Schemes targeting charity workers themselves.
Examples of coronavirus-related fraud targeting a wide audience
- Fake charity: Fraudsters may pose as non-existent charities to trick you into making a donation. They often choose a name similar to that of a well-known charity.
- Person in distress: Scammers ask for your help by pretending to be victims of the coronavirus, their friends, or relatives. They claim to have been affected by the crisis, for example, by becoming infected or being stranded in another country, and ask you to transfer money to them. They often rush the victim and demand secrecy.
- Tests, vaccines, and treatment: Scammers offer fake home test kits, as well as “miracle” drugs or vaccines that do not exist. In addition, they may try to steal personal information from elderly people enrolled in Medicare by offering them the opportunity to participate in Covid-19 vaccine trials.
- Government support: Scammers may pose as representatives of the tax service or other government organizations and try to obtain personal information or extort money under the guise of fees that must allegedly be paid to receive government assistance.
- Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and banks: Fraudsters pose as representatives of a bank or the US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and ask for personal information, claiming that your account or ability to withdraw cash is at risk.
Examples of coronavirus-related scams targeting charity workers
- Phishing. Scammers pretend to be from a real organization that gives local charities useful info, like a list of vulnerable people in the community who might need help. The victim is asked to click on a link to access the information. Typically, the link leads to a fake website or page asking the victim to pay the scammers in cryptocurrency (e.g., Bitcoin).
- Payments to another account. Let’s say an employee of a charity organization who works from home receives an email supposedly from a company that provides services to his organization. The email contains a request to transfer all subsequent payments for services to another account. Naturally, the account is owned by a scammer.
- Supply fraud. Malicious actors may sell personal protective equipment (PPE), such as masks or gloves, online to charitable or medical organizations. The paid goods either do not arrive at all or do not meet standards. New York State recently fell victim to such a scheme.
