Scammers are still preying on seniors’ frustration and confusion over finding a COVID-19 vaccination appointment, according to a warning from the AARP.
The biggest red flag is a request for payment to hold an appointment.
That is not how it works, said Fred Buzo, associate state director for AARP California.
"If you are being asked to share your personal information - so your social security number, a credit card, anything like that - in response to a text or an email - huge, huge red flag," he told KCBS Radio.
If this does happen to you, or if you think it has, Buzo said you should contact the AARP, which is tracking scams like this around the country.
"As early as December, we were seeing scams," he said. "As an example, there was a scam where people were being offered a spot in line in order to get the vaccine. They paid a certain fee. The fee we were seeing was $79.99."
Buzo added that he hopes the activation of the state's My Turn system will finally cut down on the scams.
"You know, to a certain extent, there’s always going to be scams out there," he said.
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