(MENAFN- Swissinfo) Creative criminals are cashing in on the Covid-19 pandemic, tricking people out of their money online. A Swiss website dedicated to tracking cases of coronavirus fraud has logged more than 200 cases since its launch one month ago, most of them online scams relating to overpriced or bogus products.
'Most of the crimes that we have identified are carried out on the internet, so emails, websites, fake shops or posters for masks, emails offering masks that are fake,' says criminologist Olivier Beaudet-Labrecque. 'In fact, you order the mask and never receive it. What we see the most are things that have a link to the internet and concern hygiene goods, such as masks, gels, gloves etc.'
The website coronafraud.chexternal link was launched on March 26 by The Institute for Combating Economic Crime (ILCE)external link at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland (HES-SO) in Neuchtel. The data collected is intended for research and is not passed on to the authorities. The national contact point for cyber security issues is the Reporting and Analysis Centre for Information Assurance (MELANI).external link
Criminals are taking advantage of the Covid-19 pandemic to target online consumers.
(Keystone / Christian Beutler) Fake medical goods
As of April 23, some 163 of a total 245 reports made on coronafraud.ch related to hygiene goods that were either non-compliant (expired mask, for example) or sold at what the victim considered to be an 'abusive' price. About 21 reports related to businesses and shops who were not abiding by the guidelines of the authorities. The remainder were either irrelevant reports or ones relating to phishing efforts or dubious websites offering miracle remedies and online testing for coronavirus.
Some of the more shocking acts of fraud include the sale of masks for as much as CHF300 ($308) a piece and people who volunteer to do the groceries for the elderly, take their money but never deliver the goods. The elderly, however, are not necessarily the most likely victims for these kinds of crimes, in part because they are not huge internet users relative to other age groups. The bulk of the victims were aged 31-50.
'There is no specific victim profile,' notes Beaudet-Labrecque. 'It affects all ages and both sexes… Because you are more vulnerable, you are quicker to trust people offering help.'
MENAFN2404202002100000ID1100077130
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.