Extremely misleading texts and emails have been circulating in the state, appearing to come from ‘nmhealth.net’, a bogus website that underpins an effort to steal people’s identities, according to the real Department of Health of State.
Agency advice: Ignore them.
The posts are titled “Validation of New Mexico State’s COVID-19 Vaccine Status” and feature the logos of the Department of Health and the Division of Motor Vehicles at the top. They say the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the MVD require “immediate validation of your COVID-19 status.
“This is an updated waiver and one-time validation mandatory for all residents of Mexico (sic).” Among other things, the messages ask for your social security number.
Hmm. For one thing, we actually live just north of the mentioned country. On the other hand, MVD deals with vehicle issues – not viruses.
Bruce Mann, a mostly retired doctor of internal medicine who hosts talks and podcasts about the pandemic, warns people to be on the lookout for these texts and emails because they are “so official that I fear that many will fall into the trap”.
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Here is a news that affects food delivery companies.
Las Cruces police have received reports of fake food orders totaling over $100. The incidents resulted in separate deliveries being sent to the same local primary school, although no one at the school called to place an order.
Police suggest food delivery companies get the supposed customer’s phone number and call back to confirm the order.
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If you receive a notice that you have been scammed, the notice could be – yes, really – a scam.
This rather diabolical scheme involves an email, call, or text message that there has been suspicious activity in your bank or other account, such as Netflix or PayPal.
The Better Business Bureau has received reports of these contacts, which appear to be from a legitimate business as an emergency alert. You are told to take quick action so that your account is not compromised or you are not charged for a fraudulent purchase. The email contains a link that asks for your account number, username and password.
In the phone call version of this scam, you may be told that there are high charges on your account that you haven’t paid. Some victims were told to download fake “security software”. This would give crooks access to passwords and other sensitive information.
Like so many other scam schemes, this one uses fear and intimidation to get people to act quickly without thinking.
Always take your time and if you are unsure about your account, go directly to the website rather than clicking on any type of link in unsolicited communication.
Also, a little research goes a long way. Know how a company handles disputes and suspicious activity. For example, PayPal says it won’t ask you to enter your password unless you’re on the login page.
Contact Ellen Marks at emarks@abqjournal.com or 505-823-3842 if you know what looks like a scam. To report a scam to law enforcement, contact the New Mexico Division of Consumer Protection toll-free at 1-888-255-9210 or file a complaint at www.nmag.gov/file-a-complaint. aspx.
