Protecting your finances during the Coronavirus

As if the Coronavirus (COVID-19) isn’t threatening enough, it also provides just the right conditions for scammers to take advantage. 1.) It’s a serious event. 2.) Everyone wants to stay up to date. 3.) You either want to help someone, or the virus has negatively impacted you, and you now find yourself in need. For all of these reasons, you may find yourself more willing to click on something or contribute, when ordinarily you’d shy away. Scammers know this and will hit you right where it hurts and where you are the most vulnerable. Thankfully, the following tips have been provided by KnowBe4 to help keep you safe.

Types of scams you should be on the lookout for:

1. Emails that appear to be from organizations such as the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) or the WHO (World Health Organization). The scammers have crafted emails that appear to come from these sources, but they contain malicious phishing links or dangerous attachments.
2. Emails that ask for charity donations for studies, doctors, or victims that have been affected by the COVID-19 Coronavirus. Scammers often create fake charity emails after global phenomenons occur like natural disasters or health scares like the COVID-19.
3. Emails that claim to have a “new” or “updated” list of cases of Coronavirus in your area. These emails could contain dangerous links and information designed to scare you into clicking on the link.

Remain cautious! And always remember the following to protect yourself from scams like this:

1. Never click on links or download attachments from an email that you weren’t expecting.
2. If you receive a suspicious email that appears to come from an official organization such as the WHO or CDC, go directly to the main website and check for yourself. Don’t click on the email. If you suspect that the email that you received is false, you may report them on the official sites.
3. If you want to make a charity donation, go to the charity website of your choice to submit your payment. Type the charity’s web address in your browser instead of clicking on any links in emails or other messages.
4. Keep your antivirus and security patches up to date.

Additionally,

While these examples are the most common methods, scams still take place over the phone and in person. Fictitious news articles also appear in your social media and news feeds. Do not give your debit card, credit card, account numbers, or personal identification out in any of these situations. Chesapeake Bank will never reach out to you to verify your personal data. If you suspect that you have been a victim of fraud, please contact your bank immediately.

As a side note, we also offer ID Theft monitoring and recovery services. Theft recovery services are available to all personal checking account holders at no cost, even if the fraud isn’t related to our account. There are also additional levels that you can upgrade to for greater coverage and proactive monitoring.