Health and Family Welfare Commissioner G. Veerapandian sounded a note of caution on Monday, after it came to his notice that cyber criminals were posing as health staff and asking for personal information from people.
A note from the department said that the messages often appear legitimate and ask a person to click on a link or provide personal information to avail benefits under the scheme, Janani Suraksha Yojana. Such messages are sent by fraudsters, the Commissioner said.
The message claims that ₹70 lakh has been allocated under the Janani Suraksha Yojana for lactating mothers, and that a woman can get ₹15,000 under the scheme. The fraudsters ask for the contact numbers of lactating women from anganwadi teachers.
The fraudsters also use Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s picture as their WhatsApp profile picture and ask women to share their personal details. People should be cautious before opening or responding to such messages, the Commissioner said, asking officials to alert anganwadi teachers about the new scam.
