HPH Sector Warned About Grant Donation Email Scam
The Health Sector Cybersecurity Coordination Center (HC3) has issued a sector alert about a grant donation email scam that impersonates Mackenzie Scott, the former wife of Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos. HC3 said it is aware of several healthcare and public health (HPH) sector entities that have received the emails.
The emails, a copy of one which was obtained by PCRisk, offer the recipient a share of $4 billion that is being donated to charities, churches, individuals, colleges, and businesses that are suffering financially due to the economic impact of COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine. The emails inform the recipient that they have been randomly selected through an electronic ballot process and are offered a multi-million-dollar grant.
Grant donation email scam. Source: HC3, via PCRisk
While the aims of the scammer are unclear, these types of scam emails typically require the disclosure of sensitive information such as bank account/credit card numbers or require administration fees or other costs associated with the transfer of funds to be paid in advance with the promised funds never sent. A response to the email could result in a reply that directs the user to a phishing website or may involve a malicious email attachment that delivers malware. HPH sector organizations should exercise caution and warn their employees about scam emails such as this through security awareness training. HC3 recommends implementing multifactor authentication, setting strong passwords, and implementing anti-phishing tools to prevent malicious and scam emails from being delivered.
