U.S. Attorney of central Illinois says COVID-19 scam can look legitimate

Posted on May 4, 2020
A U.S. Attorney says COVID-19 is a breeding ground for scams. (Photo courtesy: WJBC/File)

By Dave Dahl

SPRINGFIELD – A disaster can make fertile ground for fraud. U.S. Attorney John Milhiser of central Illinois says a scam can look legitimate.

“It’ll be a fictitious web site, or it’ll be a web site and when you click on it, the scammers are attempting to get private information and personal information to then take money for you. A lot of this is online, and it’s similar to a lot of scams we see in elder abuse, and the web site could be one number off,” giving as an example www.cdc.org instead of www.cdc.gov.

Milhiser says the U.S. Department of Justice web site, www.justice.gov/coronavirus, is a good source of information.

Dave Dahl can be reached at [email protected]. 

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