THE Guardia Civil has warned of a social media scam where users are being told they can claim up to €3,200 from the ministry of work and pensions.
A message doing the rounds on WhatsApp and potentially other popular sites claims that anyone who worked in Spain between the years 1990 and 2018 inclusive are able to reclaim this four-figure sum in overpaid contributions.
They are told to click on the link which is not linked to any authority in Spain.
According to the Guardia Civil, they are not sure what results from clicking on the link as yet, but it is likely to trigger spam, annoying adware or other malware, or even allow entry to hackers and expose users to the risk of identity theft.
The message includes spelling and minor grammar mistakes – the word for 'funds', which is fondos, is spelt as fundos – common signs of a phishing or other cyber-fraud attempt.
A warning on the Guardia Civil's Twitter sight reads: “This fake link purporting to be from the Ministry of Work, Migrations and Social Security, and announcing a payment of €3,200 to anyone who has worked between 1999 [sic] and 2018, is doing the rounds on WhatsApp.
“It is FALSE...they won't give you euros, but you're sure to get spam (or something worse).”
The Guardia Civil uses the hashtag #NoPiques ('Don't Fall For It').
Photograph by the Guardia Civil on Twitter (@guardiacivil)
