The West Fargo Police Department wants the public to be aware of scammers using the coronavirus pandemic to trick victims.

“It is unfortunate that scammers from around the world attempt to take advantage of stressful situations to prey upon our communities,” said West Fargo Police Department Chief Heith Janke.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation advises you to be on the lookout for fake Centers for Disease Control and Prevention emails, phishing emails asking you to verify your personal information and someone claiming they have products that prevent, treat, diagnose or cure COVID-19.

The following tips from the FBI and West Fargo Police Department are important to prevent becoming a victim to scammers.

• Don’t open attachments or click links within emails from senders you don’t recognize.
• Don’t provide your username, password, date of birth, Social Security number, financial data, or other personal information in response to an email or robocall.
• Always verify the web address of legitimate websites and manually type them into your browser.
• Check for misspellings or wrong domains within a link.

Scam victims or those wanting to report suspicious activity in the City of West Fargo should call the West Fargo Police Department. The West Fargo Police Department is also asking the community to share this information, especially with senior citizens who are typically targeted, to make them aware of the potential scams during the pandemic.