North Yorkshire warning over NHS Test and Trace scams

Response - 18 June 2020

People in North Yorkshire are being warned about scammers claiming to be part of the NHS Test and Trace service to tackle the spread of coronavirus.

Under the scheme, patients with positive test results are asked to share details about the people they’ve been in contact with recently who could have caught the virus.

The NHS will get in touch with people who have tested positive, as well as those who have been in contact with anyone with the virus. In England results are coming in by text, telephone or email. In Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales it is by telephone only.

However, there have been reports of scammers claiming to be from NHS Test and Trace so NHS North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) is advising patients to be aware and seek the correct guidance about the service.

CCG Lay Member for Patient and Public Involvement Kate Kennady said: “The NHS Test and Trace scheme is an important part of the country’s strategy to suppress Covid-19 so we can move towards normality as soon as possible. It is important that people engage with the service because the better the uptake the more successful it will be. However, there are some things to look out for to protect yourself from fraud.”

NHS England advises that any telephone call or text will come from one verified NHS number: 0300 013 5000, and it will provide you with a unique ID number which you can use on the NHS Test and Trace website. They advise that you do not click on any links in the text but instead go to the Test and Trace website.

Calls or texts from any other numbers, or from a withheld number, should be treated as not genuine.

In the UK you may also receive an email providing you with unique ID number which you use to log into the NHS England Test and Trace website. Please check any links you receive carefully.

Dr Charles Parker, Clinical Chair of NHS North Yorkshire CCG, added: “People will usually be contacted within 72 hours after a test with the result. If you have not taken a test in the last 72 hours then the call or text will not be genuine. Please also be reassured that a genuine contact tracer will not ask you to provide any passwords, bank account details or pin numbers.

“Please do not let this stop you from taking a test; it is important that we do as much as we can to halt the spread of the virus and then we can start returning to a normal life.”

You can find out more about test and trace here.

If you are concerned about a contact that you have received you can contact 0300 123 2040 and you can also find useful advice on what to look out for here.