• Who We Are
    • Who We Are
    • Mission
    • History
    • General Synod
    • Leadership and Ministry
    • Staff
    • United Church of Christ Board
  • What We Believe
    • What We Believe
    • Worship Ways
    • Daily Devotional
  • What We Do
    • What We Do
    • Office of the General Minister & President
    • Justice & Local Church Ministries
    • Wider Church Ministries
  • News
  • Church Finder
  • Donate Now
  • Search
UCC Logo United Church of Christ
  • Church Finder
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Store
  • Frontline Faith Portal
  • Donate Now
  • Search
  • Who We Are
    • Column
      • About
        • Mission
        • Constitution and Bylaws
        • History
          • UCC Archives
        • UCC Brand Guidelines
        • General Synod
          • Synod 33 Worship Videos
          • Past General Synods
        • Abuse Prevention
    • Column
      • Structure
        • Conferences
        • Affiliated Ministries
          • The Pension Boards
          • Cornerstone Fund
          • Insurance Board
          • The Council for Health and Human Services Ministries
          • Church Building & Loan Fund
          • Convergence
    • Column
      • Team
        • Elected Officers
        • Staff
        • United Church of Christ Board
          • Board Minutes
        • Office of General Counsel
        • UCCOSSN
    • Column
      • Career Opportunities
      • Annual Reports
  • What We Believe
    • Column
      • Worship
        • Statement of Faith of the United Church of Christ – La Declaración de Fe de la Iglesia Unida de Cristo
        • Worship Ways
        • Daily Devotional
        • Sermon Seeds
  • How We Serve
    • Column
      • Office of the General Minister & President
        • Welcome to Human Resources
          • Employee Relations Resources
        • Center for Analytics, Research & Development and Data (CARDD)
          • General CARDD FAQs
          • About The Center for Analytics, Research & Development, and Data (CARDD)
          • Authorized Minister Opt Out
          • Access UCC
          • Archived Reports
          • Assessment Resources
          • Information Policies and Requests
          • Faith Communities Today (FACT) Survey
          • MissionInsite
          • Statistics and Reports
          • Vital Signs and Statistics Blog
          • Data Hub FAQs
          • Data Hub
          • Yearbook and Directory
    • Column
      • Justice & Local Church Ministries
        • Justice
          • Faithful Action Ministries
            • Environmental Justice Ministries
            • Economic Justice
            • Racial Justice
          • Office of Public Policy & Advocacy in Washington D.C.
            • Justice and Peace Action Network
            • Our Faith Our Vote
            • Justice Training Resources
            • Action Center
          • Health and Wholeness Advocacy
            • Disabilities and Mental Health Justice
            • Encuentros Latinx
            • UCC HIV & AIDS Network-UCAN
            • LGBTQ Ministries
            • Our Whole Lives
            • Overdose and Drug Use Ministries
            • Scouting
            • Wellness Ministries
          • The Pilgrim Press & Stillspeaking Publications
    • Column
      • Justice & Local Church Ministries
        • Local Church
          • The Faith Education, Innovation and Formation (Faith INFO)Team
            • Weekly Seeds
            • Youth & Young Adults
          • Worship Resources
            • Worship Ways
            • Sermon Seeds
            • Synod 33 Worship Videos
            • Music and Liturgical Arts
          • Stewardship & Generosity Resources
          • Ministerial Excellence, Support & Authorization (MESA)
            • History, Polity, and Theology
            • Search and Call
            • Ministerial Profiles
            • Ministry Opportunities
            • Manual on Ministry
    • Column
      • Wider Church Ministries
        • Global Ministries
        • Global H.O.P.E.
          • Volunteer Ministries
          • Refugee and Migration Ministries
          • Disaster Ministries
          • Recovering Hope
        • Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations
  • Resources
  • News
    • Column
      • News
        • United Church of Christ News
    • Column
      • Columns
        • Witness for Justice
        • Into the Mystic
        • Getting to the Root of It
        • The Pollinator: UCC Environmental Justice Blog
        • UCC Roots
        • Encounters at the Well
        • Reflexiones
    • Column
      • Upcoming Events
        • Webinars
      • Subscriptions at the United Church of Christ
      • Changes & Deaths
  • Giving
    • Column
      • Donate Now
      • Ways to Give
        • Giving Tuesday
        • General Synod 2021 Thursday in Black Offering
        • General Synod 2021 Racial Justice Offering
        • Disaster Ministries: How to Give
        • Our Church’s Wider Mission
          • Our Church’s Wider Mission Basic Support
          • Strengthen the Church
          • One Great Hour of Sharing
          • Neighbors in Need
          • Christmas Fund
          • 5 for 5
    • Column
      • Ways We Give
        • Scholarships & Grants

  • Home
  • News
  • Column
  • Daily COVID-19 briefing from UCC - facts, not fear
  • Daily COVID-19 Briefing April 17, 2020

Daily COVID-19 Briefing April 17, 2020

by Barbara T. Baylor | published on Apr 17, 2020

United Church of Christ – Wider Church Ministries
Humanitarian Development Team
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Daily Briefing
Barbara T. Baylor, MPH – Temporary Health Liaison

Beware! Coronavirus Scammers May Be Out to Get You

It should come as no surprise that “scammers” are taking advantage of people’s fears, needs and hopes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Calls, false advertisements, scam and hoax text messages and emails promise to speed your $1,200 check, or mandate that you test for COVID-19 online, to name just two current schemes.

Such fraudulent schemes often impersonate government agencies, charities – even your friends and neighbors. And they have one goal: to steal your personal information and your money.

To paraphrase a familiar adage, “If it sounds too good (or bad) to be true, it probably is.”

Of course, fraudulent schemes (scams) are nothing new, and they often prey on seniors. Impersonating the IRS was the number one scam targeting seniors in 2018. Seniors lose an estimated $2.9 billion annually from financial exploitation, according to the Senate Special Committee on Aging.

Your best defense: Stay on high alert to spot suspicious messages. Don’t click on any links. And don’t give (or confirm) ANY personal information, not even your phone number, name or address, and definitely not your Social Security number or bank account information.

Here are just a few current scams impersonating government agencies that are using COVID-19 (coronavirus) messaging:

  1. “FCC Financial Care Center” offering $30,000 in COVID-19 relief.  There is no FCC (Federal Communications Commission) program to provide relief funds to consumers.
  2. The Better Business Bureau is also warning of a text message scam impersonating the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It “informs” recipients that they must take a “mandatory online COVID-19 test” using the included link to a website. There is no online test for coronavirus!
  3. The FCC warns of robocalls that offer free COVID-19 virus test kits along with a free diabetes monitor, targeting higher-risk individuals with diabetes.
  4. Relief payment calls, text and emails purportedly from the Social Security Administration, Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Census Bureau, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) or Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) say you’re approved for money, can get relief payments, or get cash grants due to the coronavirus.
  5. Medicare scam calls offer things like a “COVID-19” kit, coronavirus package, or Medicare benefits related to the virus. They ask for personal information such as bank account, Social Security or Medicare numbers. Report this to the Federal Trade Commission at ftc.gov/complaint. 
  6. Watch out for emails and text messages that appear to be coming from the IRS that request money or personal information. Don’t open them or click on attachments or links. The IRS reminds taxpayers that they aren’t going to call you asking to verify or provide your financial information so you can get an economic impact payment (stimulus check) or your refund faster. Go to IRS.gov for the most up-to-date information.

Here is where to report scams:

* About unwanted robocalls and robotexts and spoofing, file complaints with the FCC online or call the FTC at 1-877-382-4357.

* Report caller ID Spoofing to the Federal Communications Commission either online or by phone at 1-888-225-5322. For more information about scam calls and texts, visit the FCC Consumer Help Center and the FCC Scam Glossary. 

* You can also file a complaint about such scams at fcc.gov/complaints.

* The Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Food & Drug Administration have posted consumer warnings about fake websites and phishing emails used to promote bogus products.  

* Report Phishing and Online Scams  on IRS.gov page.

References

10 pieces of information used to steal your identity
COVID-19 Consumer Warnings and Safety Tips
Scammers are using COVID-10 messages
Spam vs. Phishing
Scam charities will take your money and run

Definitions

  1. Phishing: emails and text messages that look like they are from a company you know and trust. Phishing messages steal login credentials and other sensitive data. Phishing emails and text messages tell a story to trick you into clicking a link or attachment. 
  2. Smishing stands for SMS (short message service). They are deceptive text messages sent to one’s smart devices. Smishing scam messages may seem like they are from your bank. Do not respond, even if the message requests that you “text STOP” to end messages. Make sure your smart device OS (operating system) and security apps are up to date.
  3. Spamming is not as dangerous as Phishing. It is a tactic to sell goods and services by sending unsolicited emails.
  4. Spoofing is when a caller deliberately falsifies the information transmitted to your caller ID display to disguise their identity. Scammers often use neighbor spoofing so it appears that an incoming call is from a local number, or spoof a number from a company or a government agency that you may already know and trust. View a sample spoofing video here.

COVID-19 Daily Briefing Archives

Categories: Column Daily COVID-19 briefing from UCC - facts, not fear

Get the UCC in your inbox!

Sign up for the weekly UCC News Digest

Privacy Policy
 
 

Related News

Talitha Koum
Talitha Koum - The UCC Women's Newsletter

Welcome to Talitha Koum: The UCC Newsletter for Women, Girls and Their Allies

Welcome! I am so grateful that you have decided to connect with UCC women and allies through...

Read More
Witness for Justice
Witness for Justice

Closing the Global Gender Digital Divide

The 67th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) was held in New York City...

Read More
Column

Planning for Earth Month: Resources for Congregations

April is Earth Month, and for congregations, it can be a great time to further discern how...

Read More
  • Column
    • Local Church and Conference Resource Directory
    • Mission
    • Justice & Local Church Ministries
    • Wider Church Ministries
    • General Synod Resolutions
  • Column
    • Contact
    • News
    • Store

Content on ucc.org is copyrighted by the National Setting of the United Church of Christ and may be only shared according to the guidelines outlined here.

1300 E. 9th Street, Suite 1100
Cleveland, Ohio 44114

  • Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • Follow us on Instagram
  • Subscribe on YouTube

Donate Now


UCC Crest
© United Church of Christ 2023. Privacy Policy.
Crafted by Cornershop Creative