2009-12-10

Fraudulent emails reference CDC-sponsored state vaccinations

Contributed

Administrators with the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, Georgia, have received reports of fraudulent emails – commonly known as “phishing” – that reference a CDC-sponsored State Vaccination Program.

The messages require users to create a personal H1N1 (swine flu) Vaccination Profile on the cdc.gov website. The message then states that anyone that has reached the age of 18 has to have his or her personal Vaccination Profile on this website.

According to Martha Groomer, of Texas Health Department, section 8, Bandera, the CDC has not implemented a state vaccination program requiring registration on www.cdc.gov. She noted that users who click on the email are at risk of having malicious code installed on their system.

CDC administrators remind users to take the following steps to reduce the risk of being a victim of a phishing scam:
• do not follow unsolicited links and do not open or respond to unsolicited email messages.

• use caution when visiting un-trusted websites.

• Use caution when entering personal information online.

To report an unsolicited email purported to come from the CDC, call Groomer at 830-796-7540.