Online scams exploit virus concerns to prey on elderly

By Nadeem Badshah 

ASIAN elders are being warned to be wary of a huge surge in coronavirus-related text mes­sage and online scams.

City of London Police, which oversees Action Fraud and the Na­tional Fraud Intelligence Bureau, said there have been more than 500 such scams in recent weeks with victims losing £1.6 million.

Cifas, a fraud monitoring ser­vice, has seen a rise in cold callers pretending to be internet service providers threatening to shut off people’s wi-fi if they refuse to pay them money.

Pensioners and vulnerable people forced to self-isolate have been advised to not click web links in texts and emails from un­known senders after an increase in frauds impersonating officials from government departments.

There have been scams ranging from asking for donations to bo­gus charities and offering fake Covid-19 vaccines and medication.

Ramesh Verma, founder of the Ekta Project charity in London supporting Asian elders, told East­ern Eye: “I got one message in Ur­du which said Boris Johnson had passed away, I ran inside to my son, I nearly had a heart attack.

“I am phoning our volunteers and members, telling them to never open all these scams.

“Never give your PIN number or phone number. What kind of people are they? They are really horrible people.”

She added: “Loneliness was a killer before, now it is even worse.

“It’s important to keep a routine – showering, having breakfast, take medication, exercise, reading a book, listening to maybe some Punjabi or Gujarati music, watch­ing TV.”

Examples of scams being circu­lated include an email claiming to be from HM Revenue and Cus­toms saying: “’As part of the NHS promise to battle the Cov-19 virus, HMRC has issued a payment of £258 as a goodwill payment.”

It asks users to clink a link to provide their email address, tele­phone number and home address.

Another comes from “UK Gov”, warning people their movements have been monitored during the lockdown and they must pay a fine. The message contains links which, if clicked, will attempt to get private information.

Action Fraud said incidents re­ported to them include victims believing they are buying protec­tive face masks or Covid-19 test­ing kits that do not exist.

An Action Fraud spokeswoman told Eastern Eye: “This situation is likely to continue, with criminals looking to take advantage such as exploiting people’s financial con­cerns to ask for upfront fees fraud­ulently applied to bogus loans; offer high-return investment scams; or target pensions.

“As it stands, the government has only sent one text message to the public regarding new rules about staying at home to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Any others claiming to be from UK govern­ment are false.

“Criminals are able to use spoofing technology to send texts and emails impersonating organi­sations that you know and trust.

“The police, or your bank, will never ask you to withdraw money or transfer it to a different ac­count. They will also never ask you to reveal your full banking password or PIN.”

The public can report text mes­sage scams to Action Fraud by forwarding the original message to 7726, which spells SPAM on your keypad.

It comes after WhatsApp un­veiled new stricter limits on mes­sage forwarding in April in a bid to tackle the spread of fake news.

When users receive a message that has already been frequently forwarded they will be able to for­ward it to only one chat at a time. Previously, messages could be forwarded to five chats at once.

Imran Awan, professor of crim­inology at Birmingham City Uni­versity, said: “The recent cyber scams being perpetuated against old and vulnerable people is an­other example of how perpetra­tors use events such as Covid-19 to foster an environment and op­portunity that is used to create criminal gangs to operate within.

“This recent incident highlights how organised criminal groups and individuals are when they tar­get those most vulnerable and need. The opportunity for crime in the online space is great and gangs and individuals will harness this fear and anxiety by using technology to target people.”

Mike Haley, CEO of Cifas, said frauds are always looking for new opportunities to steal money and information. “Don’t be afraid to challenge a request if you cannot confirm it’s legitimate and remember that only criminals will try to rush or panic you into a decision.

“More than ever, people need to be hyper-vigilant of fraudulent activity and not let criminals take advantage of their fear during this difficult time.”