ICC Warns of Scammers Exploiting COVID-19 Pandemic

The April 2020 edition of its IMB Commercial Crime International (CCI) Report highlights a number of attempts by fraudsters to exploit of the current situation to their advantage.

Our eagerness for the latest information on COVID-19, coupled with wanting to help health authorities in setting up schemes to help track the spread of the virus can may make us all more vulnerable to dropping our guard and clicking on a link in a fraudster’s email or text message.

The UK’s National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) advise that most reports relate to online selling scams – in particular hand sanitiser and face masks which never arrive.

There has also been a rise in coronavirus-related phishing messages, sent from parties purporting to be health authorities, tax officials, news providers and those offering investment opportunities to take advantage of the pandemic.

The reports from INTERPOL of fraudsters cold-calling and posing as hospitals or clinics demanding funds in order to treat loved ones or relatives are even more shocking.

The International Transport Intermediaries Club (ITIC) report instances of fraudulent invoices for medical testing services related to COVID-19.

Keep up your guard!

Remind your shore-side and shipboard teams that while most of us are pulling together to support each other, there are people out there seeking to profit from our fears and our desire to help each other.

You can find out more on protecting yourself from cyberthreats in our Cyber Security expertise area.

Thanks to the ICC for allowing us to reproduce extracts from their article “Covid-19: Fraud reports soar as scammers exploit pandemic” in their April 2020 edition of ‘Commercial Crime International (CCI) Report’.