iStockphoto
A few months ago, I wrote an article about the biggest scams of 2020 and the scumbags preying on people during times of unrest.
At the time of that story, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) was warning consumers of assorted scams and online fraud. The government agency confirmed that victims of scams had lost more than $13 million since the outbreak.
Stimulus payment scams, charity scams, fake job listings, and websites selling PPE were just some of the scams taking people’s money.
There’s no doubt that number has grown with the virus spreading all over the country and the agency is now warning Americans about another scam making the rounds. This deception involves emails from “the government” issuing fines to people who were caught leaving their homes.
The Verge uncovered the growing scam that’s targeting people concerned about contracting COVID-19. The article describes people receiving an ominously worded email, which includes the warning: “We would like to inform you that you have been recorded as leaving your home on 3 occasions yesterday. A fine of $59 has been added to your gov.us account.”
If a person follows the links for the website, they’re taken to something that looks nothing like a government website.
Unsurprisingly, this was not the US government suddenly taking a more active role in the pandemic. It was a scam, one not particularly attuned to the Trump administration’s hands-off approach to solving the coronavirus crisis. While the links looked legit, the gov.us URL was only display text.
Once clicked, the link took people to su.onamoc.comano.us, a non-government domain, then redirected to a scammy website.
While most people can easily spot a scam, “most people” isn’t everyone, and all these scammers need is just a few innocent people to fall for the ruse.
[via The Verge]
***