Ride the Lightning

Cybersecurity and Future of Law Practice Blog
by Sharon D. Nelson Esq., President of Sensei Enterprises, Inc.

FBI Issues Warning About Coronavirus Fraud Schemes

March 24, 2020

As a follow up to yesterday's blog post about coronavirus phishing emails, the FBI has weighed in with information that all employers may want to convey to their employees.

On March 20, the FBI issued a Public Service Announcement.

Here's a portion of its advice:

Watch out for emails claiming to be from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) or other organizations claiming to offer information on the virus. Do not click links or open attachments you do not recognize. Be wary of websites and apps claiming to track COVID-19 cases worldwide. Criminals are using malicious websites to infect and lock devices until payment is received.

Look out for phishing emails asking you to verify your personal information in order to receive an economic stimulus check from the government. Government agencies are not sending unsolicited emails seeking your private information in order to send you money.

Phishing emails may also claim to be related to:

  • Charitable contributions
  • General financial relief
  • Airline carrier refunds
  • Fake cures and vaccines
  • Fake testing kits

Be cautious of anyone selling products that claim to prevent, treat, diagnose, or cure COVID-19. Be alert to counterfeit products such as sanitizing products and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), including N95 respirator masks, goggles, full face shields, protective gowns, and gloves.

Do not open attachments or click links within emails from senders you don't recognize.

Do not provide your username, password, date of birth, social security number, financial data, or other personal information in response to an email or robocall.

Always verify the web address of legitimate websites and manually type them into your browser.

Check for misspellings or wrong domains within a link (for example, an address that should end in a ".gov" ends in .com" instead).

If you believe you are the victim of an Internet scam or cybercrime, or if you want to report suspicious activity, visit the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov.

Sharon D. Nelson, Esq., President, Sensei Enterprises, Inc.
3975 University Drive, Suite 225|Fairfax, VA 22030
Email: Phone: 703-359-0700
Digital Forensics/Cybersecurity/Information Technology
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