CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) — With vaccines in high demand, scammers are using this as an opportunity to prey on the most vulnerable.
The federal government put out warnings letting the public know scammers are using various schemes to try and get your money or your personal information. It happened to one woman in Chesapeake.
“There was a man’s voice on there who said ‘I want to talk to you about vaccination,” said Beatrice Jones, a Chesapeake resident.
It’s the phone call Jones had been waiting for — or so she thought.
She recently pre-registered for her COVID-19 vaccine. Jones thought she was talking to someone from the health department.
“That’s the only reason that I engaged in him,”she said.
Jones said the caller had her name, birth date, and address, but wanted her to verify more personal information.
She hung up after the caller claimed she needed to send back a DNA kit to determine whether she’d get the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine. The scammers called back from a different number, this time saying Jones needed a new Medicare card.
“I called later on and it said it was no good, ‘The number you’re calling is not a working number,’” Jones said. “I didn’t get a lot of sleep last night just thinking about what are they going to do?”
Medicare put out a warning that said if someone asks for your card number for a vaccine, it’s probably a scam.
The FBI said being asked to pay out of pocket for the shot and being asked for payment to be put on a vaccine waitlist are other potential warning signs.
Both Sentara and Riverside Medical Groups tell 10 On Your Side their primary method of contact for existing patients is through their My Chart accounts, but they are reaching out by phone and email in some cases, too.
“None of our practices are asking for any personal information,” said Tom Kayrouz, president of Riverside Medical Group. “It would be a discussion around appointment only and where to go and when to show up.”
A Sentara spokesman said a good rule of thumb for patients is to call and ask the source directly if there’s any doubt.
“If you have the slightest doubt that that person calling you is from Sentara, share nothing. Hang up and call back the office of your known provider and say ‘Did you call me?’” said spokesman Dale Gauding.
For more tips on what to look out for, click here.