Know how to spot and avoid COVID-19 scams: Google's cyberthreat guidance

As people around the world are staying at home due to COVID-19, many are turning to new apps and communications tools to work, learn, access information, and stay connected with loved ones. 

Google's Director for Trust & Safety, Saikat Mitra has shared details on how digital platforms used in the current lockdown period are although helpful in our daily lives can also introduce new online security risks.

Mitra says that Google's Threat Analysis Group continually monitors for sophisticated hacking activity, and its security systems have detected a range of new scams such as phishing emails posing as messages from charities and NGOs battling COVID-19, directions from “administrators” to employees working from home, and even notices spoofing healthcare providers.

"During the past couple of weeks across the globe, our advanced machine-learning classifiers have seen 18 million daily malware and phishing attempts related to COVID-19, in addition to more than 240 million COVID-related spam messages," shares Mitra. 

Sharing more details Mitra says that to protect from these risks, Google has built advanced security protections into its products to automatically identify and stop threats before they ever reach the user. The machine learning models in Gmail detect and block more than 99.9 percent of spam, phishing, and malware. "The security we have built into Chrome browser also protects you by alerting you before you enter fraudulent websites, Google Play Protect automatically scans apps and data on your Android device so that you have the latest in mobile security, and more," says Mitra. 

Google, in the interest of its users, has released simple tips, tools, and resources to stay safe from cyberthreats.

Know how to spot and avoid COVID-19 scams: With many of the COVID-19 related scams coming in the form of phishing emails, it’s important to pause and evaluate any COVID-19 related email before clicking any links or taking other actions. It is important to be wary of requests for personal information such as home address or bank details. Fake links often imitate established websites by adding extra words or letters to them—check the URL’s validity by hovering over it (on desktop) or with a long press (on mobile). The image below are a few key tips to be aware of.

Use a password manager to create and store strong passwords: With all the new applications and services you might be using for work and school purposes, it can be tempting to use just one password for all. To keep your private information private, always use unique, hard-to-guess passwords.

Protect your Google Account: If you use a Google Account, you can easily review any recent security issues and get personalized recommendations to help protect your data and devices with the Security Checkup. Within this tool, you can also run a Password Checkup to learn if any of your saved passwords for third-party sites or accounts have been compromised, and then easily change them if needed.