How Cybercriminals Use COVID-19 Panic to Infect and Scam Users | By Dominique René

How Cybercriminals Use COVID-19 Panic to Infect and Scam Users

The dreadful coronavirus is taking the world by storm, and mankind is on the threshold of serious changes over the pandemic officially declared on March 11, 2020. Also referred to as COVID-19 or 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV), this strain got out of hand in China and is now running rampant across different parts of the globe. At the time of this publication, the total number of reported coronavirus cases exceeds 126,000, so it comes as no surprise that the disease instills fear in people regardless of their residence.

It’s common knowledge that malicious actors follow the headlines and never miss hype trains. This time, they piggyback on the “infodemic” to orchestrate massive online scams and spread malware, demonstrating once again that the margin between real and cyber worlds is a slim one. This article will give you the lowdown on cybercrime implications of the COVID-19 outbreak and methods to safeguard your digital life against the escalating e-threat.

Coronavirus-themed phishing on the rise

Malefactors are increasingly cashing in on the panic to execute social engineering scams whose goal is to wheedle out sensitive information or money. To set these hoaxes in motion, crooks send numerous emails impersonating reputable healthcare organizations and requesting....