Daily Money - Issue #62: It's scammer time

The fact that so much work has gone remote is contributing to the success rate of these schemes, said Edward Bishop, the chief technology officer at email security firm Tessian. 

“What we’re seeing is attackers trying to take advantage of the chaos and uncertainty of current times,” he adds. “[You] used to sit next to a colleague and could lean over and say, ‘Hey, did you send me this invoice?’ This relationship now is distant — and maybe even in a different time zone.”

Basically, fraudsters know I’m stressed and distracted and taking conference calls at my kitchen table. They’re making the most of the fact that my guard is down. 

Whereas usually I would disregard a funky-looking email saying “you have been recorded as leaving your home on 3 occasions yesterday” so “a fine of $59 has been added to your account,” I might reply now because my mind is elsewhere. Whereas normally I would immediately delete a WhatsApp message offering a discounted Netflix subscription, I might click through because I’m worrying about my family’s health. 

Robocalls in particular are flourishing during the pandemic. One popular robocall references how President Donald Trump waived interest on student loans — a real thing — but then pivots into asking me to call back and give them my personal info. Others offer free coronavirus tests, hawk faux cures, promote HVAC cleaning services and impersonate contact tracers. Landlines and seniors are especially at risk.

OK, so there’s some scary stuff out there. But how do I avoid it?

Bill Versen, the chief product officer at Transaction Network Services, said I should…

• Stay on top of the latest scams. The government keeps track of recent COVID-19 scams here and here.
• Ask my phone carrier what robocall detection apps it provides.
• Not answer calls from numbers I don’t recognize. Legit callers will leave a voicemail.
• Avoid clicking on links from unknown numbers that text me.
• Be diligent — and never give out personal information like my credit card number or SSN over the phone.

(but please don't tell me you scrolled past all of my hard work)

2020 is no joke when it comes to scams. Fraudsters are using the pandemic and all it involves — my distracted nature, my WFH routine, my financial desperation — to steal my cash. I need to be way more careful than normal online.

“It’s actually really sad that people are taking advantage of a pandemic, but that’s what bad actors do,” Versen says. “They find current events and use that to their benefit to defraud.”

via GIPHY

check out this crazy celebrity purchase

via Instagram

You’re not alone — Shark Tank investor Barbara Corcoran can’t stop stress-eating in quarantine, either. She recently confessed to snacking on $4 bags of Pipcorn, which as far as I can tell are basically fancy Fritos. The whole-grain corn chips come in several flavors, but Corcoran says that “Lime Zest, in my opinion, is the best.” In the same interview, she also extolled the virtues of white wine… and for that reason, I’m in.

five things I'm loving online right now

send me cute pictures of your pets, please

CREDIT: TAMI REN

Meet Kenda and Obi, a New York-based pair who are constantly on the lookout for fur-audsters.

That's all, folks.

See you next week.

Julia

P.S. Have you encountered any coronavirus scams? What’s your latest quarantine snack obsession? Do you have a favorite Hugh Grant movie? Write to me at

julia.glum@money.com or @SuperJulia. Bye now!