Fraudsters began masquerading as clinic employees to steal data
Expert Pyotr Shcherbachenko warned about a new phishing scheme under the guise of signing up for a flu vaccination
Quick Look
- Fraudsters send messages on behalf of clinics, offering to sign up for a free flu vaccination.
- The goal of the scheme is to trick the victim into clicking on a phishing link.
- Experts urge using only official government services to make an appointment with a doctor.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
During seasonal illnesses, scammers often use trending topics for social engineering.
MOSCOW, October 5 - RIA Novosti. Fraudsters came up with a new deception scheme and during the cold season began to disguise themselves as employees of clinics, said Petr Shcherbachenko, associate professor at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation.
“Now they (fraudsters - ed.) are masquerading as employees of clinics. A person receives a message by email or instant messenger with a “caring” offer to sign up for a free vaccination against the current 2026 strains of influenza. To ensure that the victim gets their attention, they use tempting phrases: “skip the line at a convenient time,” “book a scarce imported vaccine,” or “only ten slots left in your area,” NEWS.ru said. Shcherbachenko.
Open Questions
- How many victims have been recorded from this scheme?
