Scams and Phishing Attacks Grow as People Operate Online due to COVID-19
ID Experts released new data today showing consumers’ behavior and fears related to their safety online as they adapt to new social distancing and telework restrictions implemented to contain the spread of COVID-19. Not only are more Americans conducting life online than ever before – more than 70 percent are teleworking, and of that, 34 percent have been granted telework options who would otherwise not have had them – but 62 percent have signed up for new tools and platforms to work, study or play. Concerningly, most consumers fail to take adequate precautions to avoid falling prey to the scams they fear. Additionally, consumers indicated a range of reactions to the government’s use of mobile location data to track COVID-19 containment measures.
“The effects of COVID-19 are unprecedented,” commented ID Experts President and CEO Tom Kelly. “Health concerns aside, few forces have had as great an impact on how each of us lives, works and plays. Not only are more of us taking our careers and social lives online, but the scope of data and information we’re making accessible to third parties – criminal or government – is growing by the day. Since stay at home orders have begun, our team is seeing a 50 percent increase in the number of ID Experts members reporting being targeted by scams and phishing through emails, calls and texts. It’s paramount that each of us take precautionary measures to safeguard our digital lives from the new coronavirus- related threats.”