As people scramble to identify trustworthy information about the spread of COVID-19, how they can protect themselves, and how they can get tested, spammers and scammers have taken advantage of vulnerable telecommuters. For example, in just the past week, media outlets have reported on the following scams:
- Email phishing schemes include the use of organizations’ names that would normally seem legitimate.
- Website domains that appear to keep track of COVID-19 updates and health information, but prompt users to download apps to access this information.
- Online sellers are purporting to have highly sought-after cleaning and household supplies in stock, taking money but not delivering.
- Fake charities that can be a completely made up organization or one that closely resembles names of established charities.