Overview
Scammers often take advantage of health scares to distribute phishing scams. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to spawn dozens of such campaigns, scaring recipients into clicking on harmful links or attachments in emails, text messages or social media posts.
Examples of COVID-19 Scams
- Fabricated notices from health organizations (e.g., the CDC or local/state health departments)
- Fake updates from an employer about policies or procedures to address the risk
- Phony websites containing maps and dashboards
- Information about protecting yourself, your children or your community that contains malicious links or attachments
- Charitable appeals to help victims of the virus, which are not legitimate
How to Protect Against COVID-19/Coronavirus Scams
Be vigilant for COVID-19/coronavirus scams during the coming weeks. If you suspect a message may be a phishing scam, please report it by forwarding the email message as an attachment (or reporting a text or social media post) to phish@pitt.edu.
Tips for spotting phishing scams—along with detailed instructions for reporting suspicious email messages—are available on our Phishing Awareness page. Go directly to health or government sites, such as cdc.gov/coronavirus, to find updated information about the virus and its spread. Visit the University’s official emergency management website at emergency.pitt.edu/covid-19 for the latest news at Pitt.