{"id":23828,"date":"2020-03-23T05:04:27","date_gmt":"2020-03-23T12:04:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/?p=23828"},"modified":"2020-12-25T03:13:47","modified_gmt":"2020-12-25T11:13:47","slug":"avoiding-covid-19-scams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/","title":{"rendered":"Avoiding COVID-19 Scams"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Even as communities around the world pull together to battle coronavirus (COVID-19), the outbreak provides fertile ground for scammers. Authorities are striving to keep pace with con artists peddling an array of schemes.<\/p>\n<p>For example, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and the Food and Drug Administration have sent warning letters to several sellers of unapproved and misbranded products such as teas, essential oils and colloidal silver. The FDA stresses that no vaccines, drugs or investigational products are approved to treat or prevent the virus.<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-23829\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/03\/rsz_covid19-300x170.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"170\" \/><\/p>\n<p>\u201cCybercriminals will often take advantage of trending topics in the news, such as the coronavirus, to try and prey on consumers using fear and urgency tactics,\u201d says Gary McAlum, senior vice president and chief security officer for financial services provider USAA, who was quoted in americanbanker.com.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNontargeted phishing campaigns using COVID-19 as a lure in the subject line have been observed since January. These cover the range of pre-existing threats out there, including information-stealing malware,\u201d adds Steven Silberstein, CEO of the Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center, an industry consortium that promotes cybersecurity.<\/p>\n<p>According to the FTC and other authorities, online communications that should set off alarm bells include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Email from unknown sources. Analyze URLs carefully before clicking on them. If an email comes from a source that you think is legitimate and requests you click on a link, find another way to validate it.<\/li>\n<li>Correspondence claiming to be from legitimate sources like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the World Health Organization. A bogus version of Johns Hopkins University\u2019s popular coronavirus map has been used to embed malware.<\/li>\n<li>Offers for treatment or prevention.<\/li>\n<li>Solicitations for investment in companies offering in-demand supplies or products pitched as preventing, detecting or curing the virus.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Also look out for emails or telephone calls from charities or crowdfunding sites seeking cash, gift cards or wired money. If you want to donate for COVID-19 victims or research, use established organizations.<\/p>\n<p>News about COVID-19 will come from legitimate sources such as the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/index.html\">CDC<\/a>. Check their website for current information.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Even as communities around the world pull together to battle coronavirus (COVID-19), the outbreak provides fertile ground for scammers. Authorities are striving to keep pace with con artists peddling an array of schemes. For example, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and the Food and Drug Administration have sent warning letters to several sellers of unapproved [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":610,"featured_media":23829,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_s2mail":"yes","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[2809,2808,2814],"class_list":["post-23828","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-coronavirus","tag-covid-19","tag-online-safety"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v23.4 (Yoast SEO v24.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Yardi Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Even as communities around the world pull together to battle coronavirus (COVID-19), the outbreak provides fertile ground for scammers. Authorities are\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Avoiding COVID-19 Scams\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Even as communities around the world pull together to battle coronavirus (COVID-19), the outbreak provides fertile ground for scammers. Authorities are\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Yardi Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-03-23T12:04:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-12-25T11:13:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/03\/rsz_covid19.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1674\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"950\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Joel Nelson\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Joel Nelson\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/\",\"name\":\"Avoiding COVID-19 Scams - Yardi Corporate Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/03\/rsz_covid19.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-03-23T12:04:27+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-12-25T11:13:47+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/04eb5f3b4bd7f02475913d5982a422c8\"},\"description\":\"Even as communities around the world pull together to battle coronavirus (COVID-19), the outbreak provides fertile ground for scammers. Authorities are\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/03\/rsz_covid19.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/03\/rsz_covid19.jpg\",\"width\":1674,\"height\":950},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Avoiding COVID-19 Scams\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Yardi Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/04eb5f3b4bd7f02475913d5982a422c8\",\"name\":\"Joel Nelson\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/02\/JoelNelsonHeadshot.jpg?w=69\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/02\/JoelNelsonHeadshot.jpg?w=69\",\"caption\":\"Joel Nelson\"},\"description\":\"Joel Nelson, senior marketing writer, joined Yardi in 2007. His byline has appeared in New York Real Estate Journal, Canadian Property Management and Los Angeles Lawyer, among others. He has won multiple awards from major professional organizations including the International Association of Business Communicators and Public Communicators of Los Angeles. Joel earned a bachelor\u2019s degree from Pomona College.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/joel-nelson-aa363113\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/author\/joel-nelson\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Yardi Blog","description":"Even as communities around the world pull together to battle coronavirus (COVID-19), the outbreak provides fertile ground for scammers. Authorities are","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Avoiding COVID-19 Scams","og_description":"Even as communities around the world pull together to battle coronavirus (COVID-19), the outbreak provides fertile ground for scammers. Authorities are","og_url":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/","og_site_name":"Yardi Blog","article_published_time":"2020-03-23T12:04:27+00:00","article_modified_time":"2020-12-25T11:13:47+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1674,"height":950,"url":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/03\/rsz_covid19.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Joel Nelson","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Joel Nelson","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/","url":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/","name":"Avoiding COVID-19 Scams - Yardi Corporate Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/03\/rsz_covid19.jpg","datePublished":"2020-03-23T12:04:27+00:00","dateModified":"2020-12-25T11:13:47+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/04eb5f3b4bd7f02475913d5982a422c8"},"description":"Even as communities around the world pull together to battle coronavirus (COVID-19), the outbreak provides fertile ground for scammers. Authorities are","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/03\/rsz_covid19.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/03\/rsz_covid19.jpg","width":1674,"height":950},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/avoiding-covid-19-scams\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Avoiding COVID-19 Scams"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/","name":"Yardi Blog","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/04eb5f3b4bd7f02475913d5982a422c8","name":"Joel Nelson","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/02\/JoelNelsonHeadshot.jpg?w=69","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/02\/JoelNelsonHeadshot.jpg?w=69","caption":"Joel Nelson"},"description":"Joel Nelson, senior marketing writer, joined Yardi in 2007. His byline has appeared in New York Real Estate Journal, Canadian Property Management and Los Angeles Lawyer, among others. He has won multiple awards from major professional organizations including the International Association of Business Communicators and Public Communicators of Los Angeles. Joel earned a bachelor\u2019s degree from Pomona College.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/joel-nelson-aa363113\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/author\/joel-nelson\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/03\/rsz_covid19.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23828","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/610"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23828"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23828\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23830,"href":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23828\/revisions\/23830"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23829"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23828"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23828"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23828"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}