IU police warns of COVID-19 support scam

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indiana University Police Department is alerting students and staff of a potential phishing scam.

On Wednesday, IUPD shared a screenshot on Twitter of an email that asks the recipient to register for an “IU COVID-19 Giveaway.”

The email claims to be from an IU COVID-19 support team and says the university plans to give all eligible faculty, staff and students $720 to help them get through “hard times” brought on by COVID-19.

The email also contains a link for the recipient to register with their information and warns, “If you do not submit all the information requested, your application will not be processed.”

IUPD is encouraging those who receive similar emails to not click on any included links or share any credit card information with the sender.

In a tweet about the scam on Wednesday night the department wrote, “Treat this like COVID, distance yourself.”

The university asks that anyone who receives a suspected phishing email forwards it to phishing@iu.edu.