Alert! WhatsApp forward claiming to register for COVID-19 vaccine is fake

The Press Information Bureau (PIB) has warned people to not believe in this fake WhatsApp forward and it has put out an advisory that the registrations for COVID-19 vaccination is only done through the Co-WIN portal and Aarogya Setu app and not by any other methods.

Online scams have increased a lot, especially during the pandemic. Scammers use platforms like WhatsApp and other apps to trick people by asking for OTPs and other personal details.

These scams range from malware attacks to phishing scams to banking scams and several others. Meanwhile, the most recent scam that is making headlines is a WhatsApp forward that claims that COVID-19 vaccination appointments can be booked through WhatsApp.

The Press Information Bureau (PIB) has warned people to not believe in this fake WhatsApp forward and it has put out an advisory that the registrations for COVID-19 vaccination are only done through the Co-WIN portal and Aarogya Setu app and not by any other methods.

The WhatsApp forward claims that “Corona Vaccine appointment can be made via WhatsApp.” “It’s simple and easy to use like chatting,” the forward said.

It further asks users to send a “Hi” message to a number (9745697456) and follow the steps that it is told and it also asks users to submit their Aadhaar details and give a pin code for which they want to search a hospital.  

The number of people falling prey to this scam has not surfaced but it looks like an easy trap for everybody.