Scammers around the world have been hard at work since the coronavirus pandemic started, with many people falling victim even battle against COVID-19 rages on.

COVID-19 Stimulus Checks

While check scams have been active on the market for quite a while, these activities have become more active in the past months, especially since the U.S. government announced stimulus checks.

Scammers have used checks in different ways, but when COVID-19 came around, some people have claimed to assist those searching for faster ways to obtain stimulus money from the government.

Other check scams involved receiving unexpected checks. When the said checks are cashed, the consumer unintentionally makes a purchase or worse, signs up for a loan that he or she is unaware of.

Amid increasing cases related to stimulus checks, experts encouraged consumers to be alert should someone ask them to provide personal information through any platform, whether by text message, email, or phone.

Cash Aid Scam

In the Philippines, the story of a father who lost his money to scammers after they used the government's name for cash aid has gone viral.

According to Rommel A. Enriquez, the swindlers told him that someone called him and sent a friend request to his Facebook account, stating that he has received COVID-19 relief cash from the government and the said money was sent through his GCash account.

GCash has become a popular payment and money transfer app in the Philippines since the pandemic hit the country. Enriquez, trusting that the swindlers were representatives from the government, lost the P6,500 stored in his GCash account.

The Philippines' Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) as well as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), have been warning of the emergence of scammers using COVID-19 to their advantage.

Quarantine Violation Fine Scam

In the United States, a new scam has been going around, claiming that a person under monitoring has violated his quarantine and will be required to pay a certain amount.

The executive director of tech news website The Verge was among the people who received a strange email regarding the alleged violation of quarantine. T.C. Sottek was told via email that he had to pay $59 for allegedly leaving his house on three occasions.

The email was not from the White House, despite the scammers providing a link where the recipient has been asked to visit.

COVID-19 Test Payment Scam

Over in Scotland, there have been reports of swindlers pretending to work under the government's Test and Protect contact tracing service.

The scammers reportedly made cold-calls to people, demanding payments should they want to be tested for potential COVID-19 infections. Some people have been asked to pay up to £500 for tests, according to Trading Standards Scotland.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon noted that Test and Protect workers do not ask for financial data or collect test payments. Instead, they only inquire about people's activities and contacts.

Sturgeon went on to note that coronavirus tests in Scotland were free of charge and the test payment scams were "truly and utterly despicable.