crooks pretend to be Health Insurance

March 15, 2021 Joe Kenehan

This is not the first time that crooks or hackers have taken advantage of the pandemic to make money off the backs of worried users. We remember, for example, Coronavirus Tracker, an Android application dedicated to monitoring the epidemic and which was in reality only ransomware. However, on this Monday, March 15, 2021, our colleagues from the France Soir site reveal to us the existence of another well-oiled scam, this time revolving around “Contact Tracing”.

As you may know, with the TousAntiCovid application, the Health Insurance is able to get in touch with the users who are considered as contact cases. Crooks have decided to hijack this device and pretend to be the Health Insurance. The principle is simple: the scammers call victims at random and explain to them that they have been identified as a contact case.

Then the crooks demand that you give them your postal address and bank details, in order to you send a screening kit paying at your home. Of course, this is all just a pretext to gain access to your account and clear it out at lightning speed. As the Health Insurance recalls, health investigators never asking insureds for bank details.

Read also: TousAntiCovid – this fake SMS harbors the ALIEN malware

Credit: AMELI

PCR tests at home? Impossible

In addition, it is not possible to perform a PCR test yourself at home. These tests can only be performed by healthcare professionals, all in the laboratory or in screening centers. And although these medical acts are fully reimbursed by the Health Insurance, it does not participate in any way in the supply and delivery of PCR tests.

Another clarification, the institution specifies that it never calls an unknown number. The numbers displayed are always the same, namely the 3646 or 05 53 35 62 37. In addition, SMS or e-mails sent by Health Insurance never contain links requiring the recipient to identify himself or provide personal information. To summarize, suspect a fraud attempt when the other person :