It doesn't matter what is happening in the world there will always be scams. According to WILX, 52,000 Americans have complained about scams this year to law enforcement with the total loss being over $39 million dollars. You will want to make to sure that you or someone you know doesn't get scammed at a time like this, so here are some things to watch out for.

First, make sure to watch out for health care scams. There are more and more health care scams everyday with most affecting the elderly and their families. The biggest one now are scammers contacting AARP member or Medicare members asking for money in exchange for a COVID-19 cure or medication to prevent the virus. There is not a vaccine out now or any other medication that you can get over the phone or through the internet. Scammers are also stealing information from AARP and medicare recipients in exchange for a supposed cure.

Next, watch out for scam emails or phishing attempts. I mentioned last week about the job scam, and there are a few others to watch out for online. Phishing scams are big now as scammers will send out mass emails to people with something catchy like "new COVID-19 cure" or asking for your information in exchange for a supposed "big medical breakthrough". Scammers will also email people who are working from home with attempts to not only steal your information but also steal your company's information. Another example are scammers using popular maps tracking the infection rates and sending malware to those areas asking people to download software in exchange for a service or money that then potentially compromises your computer.

Finally, you will want to watch out for fake investment scams. This involves having scammers promise higher-return investments that they say are safe, especially from the stock market which has been moving a lot lately, and pushing you to respond quickly. You need to be especially careful around these because they will steal your money and you will get nothing back. A good strategy to think of during this time is if you are investing unless your financial adviser or someone you know are putting your money in an FDIC-backed bank account, any promises of gains without a losses are just words.

You can see more about these scams and more of what to watch out for here.

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