The UK government, regulators and financial organisations are urging people to be extra careful, as fraudsters are seeking to exploit the Covid-19 crisis. Britain’s Asian community which seems to be more susceptible to such frauds is falling victim to various misinformation, as fear around the pandemic spikes. After the recent report by NHS England, about how the BAME community has been affected disproportionately by the virus, fake news circulating on social media targeting the community has increased.
For example, a very common one is that drinking alcohol every day could kill the coronavirus germs in the throat. People tend to believe it more as the word ‘throat’ is very cleverly and strategically placed in a sentence about the false coronavirus remedy. Another common one is holding your breath for 10 seconds to prove if you have coronavirus. Gargling with hot water for 15 seconds is another fallacy.
Dr Neeraj Patil, FRCS, Consultant in Emergency Medicine currently treating Covid-19 patients in the UK, told Asian Voice, “It seems to be natural for some people in our community to believe in false information, and a lot of it is due to superstition. Turmeric may be good for health but drinking turmeric water does not kill coronavirus. Also, the very idea that being affected by coronavirus will immediately kill you is a wrong notion. Covid-19 illness is classified into five categories- asymptomatic, mild, moderate, severe and critical. 95% of the patients are in the asymptomatic, mild and moderate category and do not require hospital admission."
He described how the community is often seen sharing messages and rejoicing over the ‘discovery’ of an anti-viral drug that cures Covid-19 which he finds extremely worrying.
“Honestly, at present, no drug has been proven to be safe and effective for treating Covid-19. Everything that is not seriously harmful is being tried and tested to see if it works,” said Dr Patil.
“There is insufficient clinical data to recommend either for or against using Hydroxychloroquine and Remdesivir. Convalescent plasma may be used, and more trials are required to see if this really works. It may work by reducing viral load. So, it could be used as a treatment, but we need to check if the above therapies really work or not."
It is always vital to check if health related messages or content, circulating on social media have come from trusted official sources. When considering health advice most importantly, you should check the following websites: The NHS, Public Health England, GOV.UK.
Ramadan during Covid-19 and fake charities
However, health misinformation is not the only demon that is being fought by the community. During Ramadan, generosity and charity become very important for the Muslim community. But due to the lockdown, cash collection for charities has reduced and there is a fear of people falling victim to online fraud.
Farhad Ahmad, an Imam for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community told the newspaper, “There are trusted charities and online platforms, that are officially registered. People in the community are aware and use them. But during this unprecedented time, online transactions will increase. Lot of people will feel generous and help those in need. Elderly parents who are living separately or away from children, or anyone who is paying online, they have to be extra careful regarding criminals and fraudsters, who will try to take advantage of such vulnerable people.”
The Charity Commission has also highlighted this issue. In a statement shared by the government, they urged the community to be more vigilant and ignore requests to donate through a money transfer company.
It says, “Increased online giving is expected this Ramadan, with a reduction in cash collections, as mosques and community centres remain closed to reduce social contact. Most fundraising is genuine; however, fraudsters and criminals may sometimes take advantage of public generosity during times of increased giving, using various methods such as fake appeal websites, email appeals that falsely use the name of genuine charities, or appeals from fake charities.”
People are urged to check the charity’s name and registration number at gov.uk/checkcharity as most charities with an annual income of £5,000 or more must be registered.
Temples helping the community fight misinformation
BAPS Swaminarayan temple, in Neasden, London, that has been a favourite among recent UK Prime Ministers, including current PM Boris Johnson, now broadcast their daily prayers live online, and have attracted more than 3.3mn viewers. Yogesh Patel, from BAPS Swaminarayan Temple told this newspaper, “Every day, after our online ‘arti’, Yogvivek Swami, the head sadhu (saint) at the temple briefs everyone in English and Gujarati, summarising what the ministers have said earlier in the day at the Covid-19 press briefing. He also talks about relevant issues and educates people about online scam circulating via emails, Whatsapp, and social media, and urges devotees to be extremely careful about what they click through or open.
“We have also put out literature in Gujarati and English on important information from the UK Government and Public Health England, which has been especially appreciated by the elderly in our community. We are also in the process of putting together short videos on physical exercise, mental health, etc to help the community.”
Unique fraud cases and cybercrime on the rise
There have been fake texts claiming to be sent from the Government alerting people that they have received a fine for breaking social distancing rules. But with many Indians stranded in the UK due to coronavirus, there has been a spike of unique cases, where desperate citizens, longing to return home have been robbed of money after buying what turns out to be fake tickets. Hackers have also stepped up attempts to access people’s networks and steal their log in details and passwords.
Sanam Arora from NISAU, an umbrella organisation for India and India-related student societies in the UK said, “Every other day there has been either deliberate or careless misinformation being spread, on news of evacuation or resumption of commercial flights. One for example, seems to have originated in Sheffield and another which went quite viral was about flights in early April. We alerted the High Commission of India to this, following which they also issued clarifications. We advised people to stop sharing sensitive data about themselves and others, such as passport information in public WhatsApp groups. We've managed to control this to a large extent, but we still see people sharing such information publicly. This must stop, as they don’t realise that they are exposing themselves to fraudsters.”
Ashish Popat from the British Indians Voice who is administrator of the group on social media said, “We are helping Indians stranded in the UK due to the coronavirus emergency. The High Commission of India is collating information on a form, and scamsters are duplicating such forms and trying to collect card details and other personal information. People are so desperate to go home, that they often don’t think through. Additionally, people are often clicking on links, through which data is being stolen. Fraudsters are often posing as genuine charities or collating data for supposed health surveys and stealing information."
Sourav Niyogi from Bengal Heritage Foundation said, “Before repatriation of the stranded Britons from Kolkata, India to the UK, we saw some messages going around about flights- that we quickly identified as fake. We double checked the information with Nick Low, the British Deputy High Commissioner in Kolkata and tightened the security around the three social media groups that we run. Now without prior approval of the administrators, no one can post anything on our Facebook group walls. This also ensures fake messages regarding Covid-19 health remedies are kept out.”
But not everybody gets lucky. Aman Patel* recently became a victim of identity theft. A fraudster made a number of credit card applications in his name. He only realised something was not right when he received a letter from the credit card company, asking to pay instalments. Speaking to Asian Voice he said, he did not know how the person got hold of any information about him and suspected that it could be from discarded letters in bins outside that were perhaps not cleared for a while.
Beena George, has fallen victim to cyber fraud recently and said that her credit card information was stolen last month, after she bought car insurance online. That was then used by scammers to shop for around £285 worth of electronic items, sports shoes and food. “This is a completely Covid-19 related fraud,” said Beena.
“When they tried to make a couple of more transactions, including one for £500, the bank investigated and messaged me. They cancelled my cards and reissued and returned all my money.”
Fraudsters have also been sending messages to trick people into thinking that they are getting genuine offers of financial support from the government.
Checklist to protect from cyber fraud
The Government has a checklist to help people protect themselves from cyber fraud:
Just take a breath – for a moment - before you part with your money or personal information. It sounds simple, but this alone could end up preventing fraud from taking place.
Ensure that you are using the latest software, apps and operating systems on your phones, tablets and laptops and update them regularly.
And if you get an unexpected or suspicious email or text message, do not click on the link or attachment.
Don’t be afraid to challenge things like these. It’s alright to refuse or ignore requests for your money or details if you are suspicious – only criminals will try to rush you or create panic.
Remember, the police and banks will never ask you to withdraw money or transfer it to a different account. Neither will they ask you to reveal your full banking password or PIN.
You can check if requests are genuine by using a known number or email address to contact organisations directly. And if you think you have fallen victim to a scam, then contact your bank immediately and report it to Action Fraud.
For further information use https://sharechecklist.gov.uk/.
(*Name changed on request)
