Coronavirus-related scams

Reported Coronavirus scams cost victims all over the UK over £800,000 in a single month, according to Action Fraud. Here’s how to help avoid them:

• Be wary of approaches from supposed travel agents, tour operators, airlines, cruise companies, insurance companies or compensation firms promising to arrange travel, accommodation or event entry refunds: they may well be fraudulent. If in doubt, call the company you have been dealing with, on the phone number you know to be correct. These approaches take the form of emails, texts, social media posts, direct messages, online advertisements and phone calls. 

• Be wary of ads for products such as facemasks, hand sanitisers, vaccines, cures and hard-to-get goods, as they could be for non-existent products. Never pay by bank transfer, and where possible pay by credit card as doing so provides additional protection. 

• As always, don’t click on unknown links in emails, texts or posts, or email attachments. They could link to a website that captures your passwords and other confidential details or cause a malware infection, both of which can result in financial or identity fraud. They could also link to adult, hate or extremist content.

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