Cybersecurity experts describe it as a perfect storm: employees working from home — away from their firm’s IT experts and sometimes without the protection of a corporate computer network —  and hungry for information about a mysterious coronavirus.

With the COVID-19 crisis as the backdrop, fraudsters appear to be redoubling their efforts to steal information or money from unsuspecting users, sending fake emails and text messages as bait, in a scheme known as phishing.

In one scam, fraudsters pretend to be processing EI claims, preying on Canadians who’ve recently lost their jobs. Users are asked to enter their details, only for the information to be accessed by criminals.

Other schemes come disguised as messages from Shoppers Drug Mart, Public Health Agency of Canada or the World Health Organization. In all cases, the goal is to steal a user’s information or money, or infect their devices with malware.

“The tactics are still the same, it’s just the subject matter that’s changed,” said Joe Martin, with North Vancouver-based tech firm Compunet.

“People who do this for a living, they know that they’re going to get some clicks, as long as the coronavirus continues to be an issue.”

According to analysis by virtual private network provider Atlas VPN, the number of active websites used for phishing has increased by 350 per cent between January and March, just as the COVID-19 crisis erupted.

What’s more, California-based Barracuda Networks said it had observed a 667 per cent spike in phishing emails from the end of February until late March.

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CACF) said Friday it had received 75 reports since March 5 related to coronavirus-related scams, adding Canadians had fallen victim in at least 13 instances. The real number of targets and victims is likely much higher, considering few users complain to authorities.

Cybersecurity experts describe it as a perfect storm: employees working from home — away from their firm’s IT experts and sometimes without the protection of a corporate computer network —  and hungry for information about a mysterious coronavirus.

With the COVID-19 crisis as the backdrop, fraudsters appear to be redoubling their efforts to steal information or money from unsuspecting users, sending fake emails and text messages as bait, in a scheme known as phishing.

In one scam, fraudsters pretend to be processing EI claims, preying on Canadians who’ve recently lost their jobs. Users are asked to enter their details, only for the information to be accessed by criminals.

Other schemes come disguised as messages from Shoppers Drug Mart, Public Health Agency of Canada or the World Health Organization. In all cases, the goal is to steal a user’s information or money, or infect their devices with malware.

“The tactics are still the same, it’s just the subject matter that’s changed,” said Joe Martin, with North Vancouver-based tech firm Compunet.

“People who do this for a living, they know that they’re going to get some clicks, as long as the coronavirus continues to be an issue.”

According to analysis by virtual private network provider Atlas VPN, the number of active websites used for phishing has increased by 350 per cent between January and March, just as the COVID-19 crisis erupted.

What’s more, California-based Barracuda Networks said it had observed a 667 per cent spike in phishing emails from the end of February until late March.

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CACF) said Friday it had received 75 reports since March 5 related to coronavirus-related scams, adding Canadians had fallen victim in at least 13 instances. The real number of targets and victims is likely much higher, considering few users complain to authorities.

Cybersecurity experts describe it as a perfect storm: employees working from home — away from their firm’s IT experts and sometimes without the protection of a corporate computer network —  and hungry for information about a mysterious coronavirus.

With the COVID-19 crisis as the backdrop, fraudsters appear to be redoubling their efforts to steal information or money from unsuspecting users, sending fake emails and text messages as bait, in a scheme known as phishing.

In one scam, fraudsters pretend to be processing EI claims, preying on Canadians who’ve recently lost their jobs. Users are asked to enter their details, only for the information to be accessed by criminals.

Other schemes come disguised as messages from Shoppers Drug Mart, Public Health Agency of Canada or the World Health Organization. In all cases, the goal is to steal a user’s information or money, or infect their devices with malware.

“The tactics are still the same, it’s just the subject matter that’s changed,” said Joe Martin, with North Vancouver-based tech firm Compunet.

“People who do this for a living, they know that they’re going to get some clicks, as long as the coronavirus continues to be an issue.”

According to analysis by virtual private network provider Atlas VPN, the number of active websites used for phishing has increased by 350 per cent between January and March, just as the COVID-19 crisis erupted.

What’s more, California-based Barracuda Networks said it had observed a 667 per cent spike in phishing emails from the end of February until late March.

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CACF) said Friday it had received 75 reports since March 5 related to coronavirus-related scams, adding Canadians had fallen victim in at least 13 instances. The real number of targets and victims is likely much higher, considering few users complain to authorities.

The U.K.’s Action Fraud network said coronavirus-related scams have cost Britons almost £970,000 (nearly $1.7 million Cdn). The FBI warned Americans to be wary of emails purporting to be from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and to “be cautious of anyone selling products that claim to prevent, treat, diagnose, or cure COVID-19.”