Coronavirus (COVID-19) Phishing Attacks are on the Rise

Grant Pearson Posted on March 10, 2020 Posted in Alerts

Scammers often take advantage of health scares to distribute phishing scams. The worldwide spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) has spawned many such campaigns, scaring recipients into clicking on harmful links or attachments in emails, text messages, or social media posts.

Coronavirus scams have taken many forms, including:

Notices from health organizations such as the World Health Organization, Health Canada, and local health agencies
Updates from an employer about policies or procedures to address the risk
Information about protecting yourself, your children, or your community
Charitable appeals to help victims of the virus

Watch for Coronavirus scams during the coming weeks. Many health agencies around the world are emphasizing that they will not contact the general public via email campaigns. Please do not open attachments or click links in emails like this.

If you suspect a message may be a phishing scam, please report it by forwarding the email message (or reporting a text or social media post) to techsrv@nipissingu.ca.

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