Everything Dodgy about this COVID Scam
Councils across the UK have been alerting people to a scam email linked to COVID-19 Business Grants.
In this blog, we’ll show you what the email looks like – and show some telltale scam signs that are hidden within it.
A Very Legitimate Scam Email
We noticed that Liverpool City Council shared on their social media pages information about a scam email that is being sent around.
The email, which we’ve shared below, looks very legitimate – and targets businesses in the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure sectors.
The email is completely on brand with the gov.uk website, with the same colour, font and language that you would expect to be used.
Of course, for now we can only confirm that the scam email is targeting businesses in the Liverpool area, however, it’s highly probable that emails like this are being circulated in other UK cities.
Things To Spot In The Email
We have written a few blogs in the past, that highlight what helps scam emails like this to stand out.
Here’s the dodgy things to spot in emails:
1. Who Is The Email Addressed To?
Spot that the name ‘info’ has been repeated throughout the email – causing it to not make sense in places.
If this was an official email from your local council, they would definitely have personal contact information – including your full name and home address.
2. Who Is The Email From?
Another thing to spot is the lack of clarity on who the email is from.
‘District Council’ is far too vague, and suggests that this email is in fact being distributed in other areas of the UK.
If it was truly from your local council, you’d at least expect for them to put the location that they are based!
3. Bold Font Used For Payments?
If an email is writing in bold font – that’s what they want to draw your attention towards.
This email has written in bold font the figure ‘£25,000’ and the information that ‘the payment will not be processed’ unless you confirm your bank account.
The human mind puts those two things together – and panics that you are losing out on money.
This is a sure indication that something isn’t quite right. This is known as a bullying tactic that applies pressure for an instant response.
4. Google Search The Sender?
Finally check who has sent the email – in this instance Lorna Baxter is the Director of Finance (Section 151 Officer) at Oxfordshire County Council – nothing to do with Liverpool!
In fact, this search also showed us that Leicestershire County Council have also issued a warning post about this email.
If you were based in Oxford, there’s more chance you could be tricked. Always compare the signed name with the email address that has sent the email.
If you have any doubts, you can always reach out personally in a separate email to the original Lorna Baxter before you engage with the email. However, the likelihood of all of these steps we’ve mentioned coming together is very slim.
Remember: always report emails like this as phishing scams in google – to help the email servers stop it from entering people’s inboxes as a legitimate offer.