Village of South Orange: COVID-19 Vaccine Scam Alert!

Press release from the Village of South Orange:

Posted on: March 15, 2021

COVID-19 Vaccine Scam Alert!

Please be aware of the COVID-19 vaccine scams currently taking place.

There have recently been reports of a new COVID-19 vaccine email scam where people are asked to complete a survey. They offer a free reward but ask people to pay a nominal fee “to cover shipping.”

Survey scams like this are a creative way to steal your identity or money. Many survey scams offer a reward and give you a limited time to respond if you want to take the survey. A legitimate survey would not assign a time limit, nor would they ask for your credit card or bank account to pay for a reward.Scammers know people have received vaccines and are capitalizing on it. Don’t give out sensitive information. Fake surveys can be used for a myriad of uses; to steal your information, collect data about you to commit identity theft, or even install malware on your computer when you click on a link in your email.CMS, the CDC, and the vaccine companies (Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson) are currently directing all vaccine recipients to enroll in the CDC V-Safe program as a post-vaccine monitoring mechanism at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/safety/vsafe.html. There is no other survey being recommended at this time.

The flyer below shows an example of what to expect from scam emails as well as ways to protect yourself from email scams. Please do not respond or click any links in these emails.

This press release was produced by the Village of South Orange. The views expressed here are the author’s own.