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Living in the digital age that we do now, it's no surprise that identity theft schemes have become rampant. Especially now with most people staying home to social distance or work remotely, our presence online has only increased leaving us more susceptible to digital attacks.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) noted that identity theft schemes increased four times throughout this past April compared to January to March of this year. Scammers have been causing misery to their victims.

According to Cybersecurity Ventures, cybercrime damage could total $6 trillion by 2021 which is about 10% of the world’s economy.

Additionally, a recent survey by IBM found there was a 6,000% rise in COVID-19-related spam, mostly, hackers impersonating government officials and institutions. While hackers don’t discriminate, and anyone can be a victim, they will often go after “vulnerable” populations, including seniors and those on Social Security.

Outlined below are four of the biggest attacks and data breaches you should know about so far this year so you can prepare and protect yourself against these cybercriminals.

1.  COVID-19 scams phishing scams

As of April 21, 2020, the Internet Crime Complaint Center of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) received over 3,600 complaints related to COVID-19 scams.

Scammers try to lure and defraud unsuspecting consumers by advertising/selling vaccines or cures that do not exist. They also focused on raising money for fraudulent causes or groups supposedly supporting efforts around COVID-19.

One cybercriminal even posed as the American Red Cross and was soliciting donations, in an effort to get banking numbers. The FBI found that these sites were delivering malware via email or hosting other types of scams to get users to give out their personal, banking, or credit card information. Opening this kind of communication or clicking the links in such an email can implant malware on your computer or go through your computer looking for passwords or other personal information.

2. Stimulus Check and Social Security Scams

Social Security scams have always been common as cybercriminals are targeting to steal your most valuable personal information.

Today, identity thieves are exploiting the confusion around the CARES Act, which is best known for the stimulus checks, to get to your Social Security number or banking information.

For example, a number of fraudulent sites have emerged that are designed to look like legitimate places to apply for the stimulus checks. Some even market themselves as sites where you can supposedly ‘receive them faster’. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) already distributed the stimulus checks to most Americans.  A second bill has been introduced in Congress that would give qualifying Americans additional stimulus checks.