"Watch out! Hands off!"

Health insurance fund warns of fake messages

Attention, scam: Insured persons of the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) are once again receiving emails and text messages about an alleged refund. "These messages are an attempt at fraud," said the ÖGK in a press release on Thursday. 

In the letter, insured persons are asked to open a link to request a refund online. ÖGK urges its policyholders not to respond to this. Under no circumstances should the link provided be opened or personal data disclosed.

In this context, ÖGK pointed out that the request to immediately click on a link or enter sensitive data is a clear warning sign. Reputable organizations do not request an immediate reaction in this way, it said.

The health insurance fund also warned people never to disclose personal information such as passwords, credit card details or PINs via text message or suspicious links and to regularly carry out software updates to close any security gaps on their computers or mobile devices.