Rospotrebnadzor warned Russians against buying "miracle pills" against COVID from scammers

One of the most common scammers' tricks is the sale of non-existent goods supposedly capable of protecting against the coronavirus. Fraudsters offer to buy air purifiers and other means supposedly blocking viruses in the air, respirators, medicines and food additives that prevent you from contracting a dangerous disease. As a rule, ordinary ones are sold under the guise of miraculous remedies, only at a price several times higher than their market value.

Rospotrebnadzor advised not to come into contact with fraudsters. "As a rule, if a person begins to question the seller in detail about the manufacturer of this device, or the company that sells it, communication with such a client is immediately interrupted", the department noted.

In addition, scammers call Russians and report that they allegedly contacted a sick person, offering to take a paid test for coronavirus at home. The department recommended in this case to ask for a license from this clinic, which intends to go to the call. There are also offers of a free test at home, but, as a rule, the goal of scammers in this case is to break into an apartment and steal something of value.

Another common method to play on the feelings of Russians during a pandemic is to talk about the supposed payments and compensation for damage to those who have suffered from the disease. Rospotrebnadzor recalled that civil servants do not make such calls, and even more so do not make door-to-door rounds.

Finally, scammers actively use phishing emails offering sometimes absurd ideas, for example, how to get rid of the coronavirus in an apartment with a hair dryer. When the scammers click on such links, they find out the personal data of the Russians. To entice Russians to follow phishing links, offers are often sent out for part-time jobs or new high-paying jobs - offers are especially tempting in times of crisis and rising unemployment in the country.

It's worth reminding that cases of fraud have become more frequent in Russia during the spread of the epidemic. During the first lockdown, dozens of pages appeared on the network, on which scammers talked about how to get government payments due during the period of self-isolation. The purpose of these pages was to get access to the bank card of Russians. Now the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Roskomnadzor, the Prosecutor General's Office and the Central Bank are developing proposals on how the organizers of these fraudulent schemes can be brought to justice.