'Covid-19 Passport' scam email

[kernelbogey]

I've just received an email purporting to come from UK government offering 'Hard copy and digital Covid-19 passport'. It's pretty obviously a scam but could take in anyone not familiar with how uk government communications are styled.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

The return email address is often a good indicator of a scam.

[teamsaint]

Thanks for the heads up KB.

I’d forward it here if I were you

:sajid.javid.mp@parliament.uk

[Petrushka]

Thanks for the heads up KB.

I’d forward it here if I were you

:sajid.javid.mp@parliament.uk

I'm assuming that your suggestion is on the facetious side, ts

The correct e-mail address to report such scams is report@phishing.gov.uk and if KB still has it on his computer, I'd suggest it is forwarded there. I've done this with several scam e-mails supposedly from HMRC in the past and hope it does some good. However, no harm in KB forwarding to the Saj as well!

[agingjb]

This one turned up for us just after we had chosen a site from which to order the pre and post tests. I'll name the site if we don't get a good reply. I would add that the site we used for an earlier trip failed to send one of our pre trip tests, although they did manage to send the post trip tests.

I will report the scam to report@phishing.gov.uk.

There seems to be a lot of incompetence (and villainy) around.

[teamsaint]

I'm assuming that your suggestion is on the facetious side, ts

The correct e-mail address to report such scams is report@phishing.gov.uk and if KB still has it on his computer, I'd suggest it is forwarded there. I've done this with several scam e-mails supposedly from HMRC in the past and hope it does some good. However, no harm in KB forwarding to the Saj as well!

Just fighting the fight Pet. The prospect of vaccine passports appalls me, most especially as part of the legacy we will hand to young people. And the passports have no demonstrable public health benefit.

I was really inspired by a book we recently published about the Greenham women.
They may not have had many of us on their side, but they really stood up and walked the walk for their beliefs, in the face of huge odds, and disgraceful hostility.
They were really creative in the ways they took the fight to the might of the US and UK Military, in ways that were seldom reported at the time .
And they were vindicated when the missiles were gone in less than 10 years, and the land, which they always said was being used illegally by the military, was returned to common land.

Even if we disagreed with their views or methods, we can learn much from them. And music was a huge part of their protest.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

I was really inspired by a book we recently published about the Greenham women.
They may not have had many of us on their side, but they really stood up and walked the walk for their beliefs, in the face of huge odds, and disgraceful hostility.
They were really creative in the ways they took the fight to the might of the US and UK Military, in ways that were seldom reported at the time .
And they were vindicated when the missiles were gone in less than 10 years, and the land, which they always said was being used illegally by the military, was returned to common land.

Even if we disagreed with their views or methods, we can learn much from them. And music was a huge part of their protest.

The ultimate musical tribute to the Greenham women was the Choral Drama/Oratorio The Gates of Greenham by Tony Biggin. I was involved in its first performance, having copied the complete orchestral parts by hand from the full score. Also I auditioned the 100 strong choir for the recording that took place at the end of 1985. Later I produced the revised version of the vocal score. The first version was mostly legible, but was riddled with errors and the orchestral reduction was unplayable.

https://tonybiggin.com/choral-music-2/choral-orchestral/the-gates-of-greenham/

[teamsaint]

The ultimate musical tribute to the Greenham women was the Choral Drama/Oratorio The Gates of Greenham by Tony Biggin. I was involved in its first performance, having copied the complete orchestral parts by hand from the full score. Also I auditioned the 100 strong choir for the recording that took place at the end of 1985. Later I produced the revised version of the vocal score. The first version was mostly legible, but was riddled with errors and the orchestral reduction was unplayable.

https://tonybiggin.com/choral-music-...s-of-greenham/

Many thanks EA. Don’t think I had ever heard of this work. That must have been a huge volume of work for you.
I shall listen with very great interest.

[kernelbogey]

The correct e-mail address to report such scams is report@phishing.gov.uk and if KB still has it on his computer, I'd suggest it is forwarded there. I've done this with several scam e-mails supposedly from HMRC in the past and hope it does some good. However, no harm in KB forwarding to the Saj as well!

Thanks, Pet: I was sure there must be an address to report such things - the banks all do, I believe.

Eine is right that the return (or source) address is a good clue. This one is from that well-known government address GOVnhs.co.uk!

Here's the bulk of the text:

The COVID-19 travel certificate has been created in a bid to restore the freedom of travel,
which has been put at a halt for over a year now, since the pandemic erupted all over the block.


Through the certificate, the Commission intends to remove travel restrictions as entry bans, quarantine obligation, and testing.

Those holding such a document will be able to travel throughout Europe without the need to quarantine or test for COVID-19


The Passport will be issued to all those who have been fully vaccinated against the Coronavirus, with one of the four vaccines approved by the National Medicine Agency, which are:

AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna and Janssen (Johnson & Johnson)

The certificate will prove that its holder has been vaccinated while also containing additional information on the vaccine, as when the doses were administered, who is the manufacturer, etc.

Who can use this service

You can only use this service if you have received an email/SMS regarding this invitation. You can not use this service for anyone other than yourself.
You are also free to reject this invitation, your appointment will be issued to the next person in line in that case.

Please confirm or reject your invitation by selecting an option below.

That feels like English written by someone whose first language is another. Also, suddenly the 'commission' makes a sudden appearance without previous reference.

Finally it demands:

You are required to reply to this invitation within 24 hours of this notification.

Even Priti Patel doesn't make that sort of demand

[oddoneout]

Thanks, Pet: I was sure there must be an address to report such things - the banks all do, I believe.

Eine is right that the return (or source) address is a good clue. This one is from that well-known government address GOVnhs.co.uk!

Here's the bulk of the text:
That feels like English written by someone whose first language is another. Also, suddenly the 'commission' makes a sudden appearance without previous reference.

Finally it demands:




Even Priti Patel doesn't make that sort of demand

No, she delegates it to some hapless Home Office employee.

[french frank]

Finally it demands:

You are required to reply to this invitation within 24 hours of this notification.

Often a giveaway demand for various scams. Don't stop to think about it or ask anyone: it needs a quick reply.

Even Priti Patel doesn't make that sort of demand

No, though it avoids the publicised pitfalls of mentioning the NHS or the cost (current scam rate £25, so I gather) What happens once you've accessed the "NHS" website - quite authentic looking, I believe - who knows? Action Fraud have reported any number of such emails already but haven't yet managed to stop them coming.

[Dave2002]

This one is from that well-known government address GOVnhs.co.uk!

That feels like English written by someone whose first language is another.

Indeed closer examination of the text does strongly suggest a scam. Not necessarily by a non native English speaker, but someone who hasn't taken enough care to get the idioms and punctuation right which would be appropriate for an official document.

There are many English speakers who fall into that category. Sometimes even official documents aren't idiomatic or grammatical - though usually they are.

[Petrushka]

The first paragraph is a dead giveaway. No genuine official communication would use a phrase such as 'put at a halt' or 'the pandemic erupted all over the block'. Furthermore, what is the 'National Medicine Agency'? There is the JCVI, Joint Committee on Vaccines ans Immunisation, and Public Health England as well as the respective bodies in Wales, Scotland and NI.

Nevertheless, scammers are getting cleverer and many people would have been taken in by this.

[Old Grumpy]

The first paragraph is a dead giveaway. No genuine official communication would use a phrase such as 'put at a halt' or 'the pandemic erupted all over the block'. Furthermore, what is the 'National Medicine Agency'? There is the JCVI, Joint Committee on Vaccines ans Immunisation, and Public Health England as well as the respective bodies in Wales, Scotland and NI.

Nevertheless, scammers are getting cleverer and many people would have been taken in by this.

National Medicine Agency, analogous to the National Crime Agency who kindly rang me on my mobile the other day

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

It's the way they claim to know all about you and then ask for your name.