Coronavirus Scams

As the number of cases and the fatality rate of the coronavirus continues to rise globally, scammers are cashing in on the fear surrounding the virus. Multiple cases abound of coronavirus themed social engineering attacks from sites offering cures to outbreak monitoring apps that install malware.

Consequently, the #NoGoFallMaga team has decided to put up this page to inform the public on the latest coronavirus scams circulating in our digital space. Find below the most recent scams and check back frequently as this page will be updated as more scams are uncovered.

Also, we welcome every contribution, kindly give us information on scams using the contact form at the end of the page.

Contents

1. WhatsApp Stay at Home Grant
2. Netflix against Coronavirus scam
3. Coronavirus Ransomware
4. Work with WHO Scam
5. COVID 19 Federal Government Free Internet Activation Scam
6. Edo State Government Asking for Account Numbers Scam
7. COVID-19 Vishing Scam
8. Urgent, in support of all Nigerians Scam
9. Fake Atiku Foundation Scam
10. FG Lockdown Funds Scam
11. COVID-19 SMS Scam
12. Relief Disbursement Scam

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WhatsApp Stay at Home Grant

This scam has been circulating on WhatsApp. The scammers are taking advantage of the stay at home advice and using the pretext of government giving out grant money to lure people into clicking their malicious link.

This scam uses a link shortening service which when expanded shows the actual domain behind the link to be Blogspot. Blogspot is used for making blog pages, further reinforcing the fact that this is a scam because the government will never use a free blog service for collecting information.

The link leads to a page that collects personal information and asks the user to share on WhatsApp

Be always wary of any service or site that prompts you to reveal personal information. But most importantly, never click on links sent in WhatsApp messages. If the government is going to give out any form of a stimulus package, this will be communicated through official news outlets and the media.

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Netflix Against Corona Virus Scam

This scam tries to take advantage of the fact that most companies are giving free access to their paid offerings to support those in isolation. The link leads to a site that impersonates Netflix by using their logo and picture.

The site asks you to answer some questions then proceeds to tell the user that they have won access but in order to activate they have to share with 10 of their WhatsApp contacts.

But the thing is no matter how many times you share the link to your WhatsApp contacts, you are never given access to your free account. This is how the scammers get their link shared to a large number of people. Also, notice the scammers try to make their site look convincing by putting pictures of fake users and comments.

The aim of all of this is to make money by serving ads, as any action on the site opens a new web-browser window to another site. This method could also be used to send users to malicious sites that could download malware on their devices.

To reiterate, never click links in WhatsApp or any other messaging service. If you see a message about a company offering a free service, use a search engine like google to verify the message.

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Coronavirus Ransomware

Cybercriminals are now spreading a fake android application which is actually ransomware in disguise. The malicious app is spread through the domain coronavirusapp[.]site and prompts users to install in order to be able to track the spread of the coronavirus and receive updates.

Once installed and given permissions, the app locks the users’ device and asks for $100 in bitcoin to unlock.

To safeguard yourself from such scams do not click on links in messages and only install apps from safe sources like Play Store and Apple App Store

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Work With WHO Scam

Due to the coronavirus outbreak, a lot of businesses have had to shut down and in the process let go of employees. This has increased the unemployment rate in many countries. This means there are a lot of desperate people at the moment looking for a means of livelihood.

This scam looks to take advantage of such desperation to harvest personal information that can be used later in a social engineering attack.

It claims to offer a job with the World Health Organization to fight the coronavirus and is hosted on the domain http://who-jobs.alltechyou.com/

To avoid such scams never respond to unsolicited employment offers and always use the internet to research any job offer you receive.

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Covid 19 Federal Government Free Internet Activation Scam

This is another scam circulating on WhatsApp and uses the bit.ly link shortening service. It claims the Federal Government is giving 100Gb of data.

Notice that the site uses the WHO logo at the top in order to convince people of its legitimacy. Also, the 100Gb of free data is used as bait to get people to fill the form, after all, who wouldn’t want 100Gb of data?

This is when pausing to think is important. Why would the government give out 100Gb of data and not masks or hand sanitizers? Also, such an announcement should come from official government channels and most likely go through the print and broadcast media.

Finally, as always, we recommend you do not click links in WhatsApp messages and use search engines such as Google to research the authenticity of any message received via WhatsApp.

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Edo State Government Asking for Account Numbers Scam

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: Edo State Government has asked everyone to send his or her account numbers with your phone accompanying it. Please, send your account number and phone number today because it will go to Benin tomorrow as early 7am. Don’t send it late. I will advise you do that now as soon as you get this message. Send it to Him. Aifuobhokhan on 08060564738

This message is being circulated on WhatsApp. It targets indigenes of Edo state by claiming their state government is asking for phone and account numbers. The idea behind this is to trick people into thinking the government is planning some form of financial relief for them. Notice the message uses urgency as a tool to get recipients to act, which is a typical ploy for scammers.

Please do not send sensitive information to anyone on social media or social messaging applications like WhatsApp. Follow confirmed government social media handles for information or check the print and broadcast media.

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Covid-19 Vishing Scam

This is a slight twist to the classic ATM card fraud in which someone calls and asks for your card details pretending to be a customer service representative from your bank. The added twist here is the scammer is using the coronavirus as a pretext to try and convince the target.

We should remember that even during these times banks have not changed their procedures. No bank will call you to ask for personal or sensitive information. Once you receive such calls always hang up and call your bank’s customer service number which you can find here.

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Urgent, in support of all Nigerians Scam

Urgent, in support of all Nigerians ??
Obtain N4000 Balance credit and 1000GB Free Internet from here:
http://danllex.com/Nigeria

The scam above has been trending on WhatsApp. It promises =N= 4,000 and 1000Gb free data. The scam doesn’t say who’s giving the cash or the free data. The link when clicked redirects to another site http://gamepax.me/Nigeria/ which asks the user to take a survey about the coronavirus to redeem the free credit and data.

Why this scam is particularly dangerous is that as you are taking the survey the site redirects you to another site that tries to install a trojan on your device.

To reiterate, never click on links in WhatsApp messages and any message that talks about free data or a government stimulus package should be considered as malicious until proven otherwise.

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Fake Atiku Foundation Scam

This scam being spread through WhatsApp claims Nigeria’s former vice president Atiku Abubakar is going to pay a =N= 10,000 weekly allowance to those who register.

After credentials are supplied it asks the target to share the scam on Whatsapp.

After which the target is told to expect a call to receive the package. No doubt this call will use the information already gleaned to attempt to defraud the target.

We advise that you should be wary of any WhatsApp message that mentions the current pandemic and never to click any link in said message.

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FG Lockdown Funds Scam

The message above was seen being shared on WhatsApp. It asks that a target click a malicious link to get =N= 5,000 from the government. Clicking the link leads to a page that asks bogus questions, screen shots below

It then asks for bank details and for you to share on WhatsApp to receive the lockdown funds. The scam also displays a list of fake social media users that have supposedly received the funds.

We implore everyone to be very skeptical during this period. The government already has your information and will not ask for it in exchange for access to palliatives. Disregard all such messages and do not click links in them.

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Covid-19 SMS Scam

Watch out for text messages that ask for bank account details or other sensitive information. Scammers are now using the pretext of federal government palliatives to hoodwink unsuspecting members of the populace. Here’s a sample of such fraudulent text messages being sent below

Remember, the government will never ask for your personal information. Kindly disregard such messages when you receive them.

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Relief Disbursement Scam

Info sent in from Abuja. Kindly register your friends and family. It’s a Collation form which closes on Monday 20th April. Please register asap.
https://forms.gle/Etzuhd9zRTvnaK2s8
Act Promptly

The message above has been circulating on WhatsApp. It claims to be a collation for some sort of palliative and urges the recipient to act quickly by registering. The link leads to a google form, screenshots below

As seen above, the form asks for a lot of sensitive information. Also, by stating that the registration end date is today, the scammers are using urgency to get people to give up their details without properly thinking about it. Other red flags are the form doesn’t state which agency is implementing the collation, it just uses an image of the Federal Government of Nigeria. Finally, the use of a google form by the Federal Government to collate highly sensitive information is out of place.

As advised, never click on links in email, text or social media messages. If the government is going to collate details, this message will be communicated through the appropriate channels such as print/broadcast media, verified websites and social media handles.

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