It's important to stay diligent.

Recently, cybercriminals have been using the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic to launch phishing attacks and various other scams. As COVID-19 continues to spread globally, watch out for associated scams, such as:

• False Information Emails: fraudsters have been sending emails claiming to be from legitimate organizations, government or public health agencies (e.g. World Health Organization, Public Health Agency of Canada) to provide information about the coronavirus
• Medical Advice Emails: Phishers have sent emails that offer bogus medical advice to help protect you against the coronavirus or cure you of it
• Corporate Policy Emails: Cybercriminals have also targeted employee workplace email accounts. With many workers currently working from home, some corporate cybersecurity measures may not be available, and the criminals are trying to take advantage

The RCMP recently released a report that listed various other COVID-19 related scams to be aware of, including:

• Unsolicited calls, emails & texts giving medical advice or requesting urgent action or payment
• Unauthorized or fraudulent charities requesting money for victims, products or research
• Door-to-door salespeople selling household decontamination services
• Private companies offering fast COVID-19 tests for sale