COLUMBIA, S.C. — State officials are warning everyone about a vaccine scam. South Carolina Emergency Management Division Public Information Coordinator Brandon LaVorgna said both them and DHEC have received reports of people trying to get personal information or money from individuals by pretending to schedule a vaccine appointment.
Both SCEMD and DHEC said neither agency would reach out to anyone asking for money or personal information.
Remember, people need to set-up a vaccine for themselves, folks won't be contacted.
"Right now phase 1-A , the majority of people that fell into that category are senior citizens and unfortunately we see all the time during large crisis moments like COVID-19 people trying to take advantage of them, and a lot of them don't have the resources available, so when someone is contacting them they think, this will make my life a lot easier, and sometimes scammers are very convincing," LaVorgna said. "It's disgusting to say the least that someone is going to take advantage of someone during the pandemic and someone of the elderly age."
If someone does contact you trying to get money or personal information in exchange to get a vaccine appointment, SCEMD said contact law enforcement and report it.
If you are targeted also contact DHEC's Care Line at 1-855-472-3432 and report it to the Department of Consumer Affairs and the Federal Trade Commission.