Watch out: Omicron variant scams being used to steal your identity

Tinted microscope image of a coronavirus displayed on an Android phone.

(Prototype credit: photosince/Shutterstock)

Never ones to pass upward an opportunity, phishing scammers are at present using the media coverage of the new Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19, to steal people's personal information and commit identity theft.

It began last week when British consumer-review website Which? (the question mark is intended) got several phishing emails forwarded from readers. All the emails claimed to come from the National Health Service (NHS), England's public-health authorization, and offered to send readers an Omicron-variant home-testing kit.

The emails added that every resident of the England needed to have such a exam or be required to self-isolate.

"People who exercise not consent or cannot agree to a COVID-xix exam and decline to undergo a [test] swab must be isolated," the email said.

The email provided a link or button for readers to click on, which took anyone foolish enough to practice so to a fake NHS page that, every bit Which? put information technology, "asks for your total name, engagement of birth, address, mobile [number], and email address — more than plenty to attempt identity fraud."

As an selection, it as well asked you to provide your mother's maiden name equally the answer to a "security question." There was likewise a "commitment fee" of £1.24 (about $1.65 U.S.) to get the supposed Omicron test to you.

Coming to America

Today (December. 6), Bitdefender reported that it had seen the same scam email repurposed to target U.S. residents, with the purported sender being the federal Department of Health and Man Services rather than the NHS.

The U.South. version is a bit different. Confusingly, it urges yous to "book your slot today" for an Omicron-variant test, which presumably would be done at a clinic or chemist's shop, but so later offers to send you a home-test kit.

Instead of providing a link to a website, the U.S. version just provides a telephone number to phone call.

"Individuals who are duped into calling the number will most likely cease upwards speaking directly to the scammers, who programme to trick them into handing over personal information including their credit-card details," Bitdefender'southward Alina Bîzga wrote in a company weblog post.

Needless to say, don't believe any of these emails, or like instant messages, text messages or social-media posts, if they come your way. There's no COVID-19 testing mandate for the general public in either country, and the tests in-use can observe the Omicron variant along with other forms of the virus.

What to practise if you autumn for the Omicron phishing scam

If you do happen to autumn for one of these scams, then you lot're at serious gamble of identity theft. U.South. residents should prepare up a gratis credit freeze with the Large Three credit-reporting agencies, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, equally well equally file fraud alerts with all iii bureaus. (You need to contact only one bureau most the fraud alert, and that bureau volition notify the other two.)

Take advantage of the greater availability of free credit reports, because at least until April 2022, you can get a complimentary study from Equifax, Experian or TransUnion every calendar week at annualcreditreport.com. You'll as well want to consider one of the best identity theft protection services.

U.S. residents should besides file a fraud report with the Federal Trade Commission at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/ simply and then the agency can keep track of the scams. And if you happen to requite one of these scammers your credit-carte du jour number, contact the bank that issued the card right away and notify them that there might be fraudulent charges on the way. You may accept to be issued a new bill of fare.

If you're a U.S. resident and someone does end upward using your personal information to commit fraud, and so you may need to file a police report. That's the beginning legal step in reclaiming your identity and making certain you won't be held liable for fraud committed past someone pretending to be you. Nosotros accept more data in our guide about what to do if your identity is stolen.

In the U.Thousand., you should apply for Protective Registration with the fraud-prevention service Cifas. Protective Registration costs £25 and places an alert with your file in the National Fraud Database, which lasts for 2 years. Yous can also become costless credit reports from each credit agency's UK website: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion.

And as in the U.Due south., you also should contact your credit carte du jour's banking concern if you lot gave the number to the scammers.

Paul Wagenseil is a senior editor at Tom'due south Guide focused on security and privacy. He has also been a dishwasher, fry cook, long-haul driver, code monkey and video editor. He's been rooting around in the information-security infinite for more than than xv years at FoxNews.com, SecurityNewsDaily, TechNewsDaily and Tom's Guide, has presented talks at the ShmooCon, DerbyCon and BSides Las Vegas hacker conferences, shown upwards in random TV news spots and even moderated a panel discussion at the CEDIA dwelling-technology conference. Yous tin can follow his rants on Twitter at @snd_wagenseil.