The recent volcanic eruption in Iceland resulted in thousands of flights cancelled and travel plans disrupted. Past experience shows that scammers commonly exploit domestic and global events to trick victims.
Based on overseas reports, a new scam is circulating asking passengers affected by the volcanic eruption to provide personal details, including passport information, in return for compensation. These scam emails purport to be sent on behalf of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
These messages have not been sent by the CAA. Passengers are asked to delete these messages immediately. There is a high risk that any personal information received will be misused. There is no CAA fund for compensating passengers affected by the volcanic ash disruption.
Scammers may also pretend to work for various airline companies in an attempt to obtain money or your personal details.
SCAMwatch advises consumers to be suspicious if they receive unsolicited emails/letters pretending to be from airline companies and/or government agencies. If in doubt, always call the airline and/or government agency to verify whether it is a genuine request.
