A scammer has been jailed for sending out text messages masquerading as the NHS claiming to check whether the victim was eligible for a Covid vaccine.
Teige Gallagher, 21, of Haringey, North London, carried out a large-scale ‘smishing’ text message campaign linking to a fake webpage.
The messages, claiming to be from the NHS, requested personal and financial information, claiming the details were needed to verify and determine when the recipient would be eligible for the Covid-19 vaccination.
Between October 1 and March 11, Gallagher sent fraudulent text messages also claiming to be from banks and mobile phone providers.
Officers seized and examined Gallagher’s digital devices and found they contained thousands of telephone numbers and other personal details believed to belong to victims he was planning to target.
Gallager pleaded guilty to committing fraud by false representation and for being in possession of articles for use in fraud, following a successful investigation by the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU), a specialist police unit funded by the banking and cards industry.
Det Chf Insp Gary Robinson, head of unit at the DCPCU, said: “Gallagher wrongfully thought he could get away with impersonating organisations and sending out scam text messages, including ones related to the Covid-19 vaccine to commit fraud.”
