AG Warns of COVID Vaccination Card Scams

By Jeremy Coumbes on April 1, 2021 at 2:42pm

Illinoisans are being warned about another new type of scam that is beginning to surface, this time it’s COVID vaccination cards.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul is cautioning residents to avoid posting images of vaccination cards on social media. Raoul is advising people to protect their vaccination cards as they would other forms of personal information.

According to the Attorney General’s office, scammers can pull information from vaccination cards posted on social media and use them to get sensitive information about recipients of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Additionally, the Attorney General’s office is evaluating reports of fake vaccination cards available for purchase online. Raoul urged people not to purchase fraudulent cards and instead report them to the Attorney General’s office.

Raoul says scammers can use names, birthdates, the location of the vaccination, and metadata from photos of COVID-19 vaccination cards posted online to obtain the contact information of vaccine recipients. The scammer could then contact the recipient or use information from the recipient’s card and social media profile to steal other personal information. 

Raoul is urging people to avoid websites that claim to sell doses of the COVID-19 vaccine or vaccination cards. Consumers also should be aware that Medicare or Medicaid will not call seniors or residents to proactively offer the COVID-19 vaccine.

Additional information is available free of charge on the Illinois Attorney General’s website and on the Illinois Department of Public Health’s website. Individuals can report a scam by calling the Attorney General’s Consumer Fraud 1-800-243-0618 (Springfield), or 1-800-243-0607, or by filing an online complaint.