In January 2022, as the omicron strain of the coronavirus epidemic swept the United States, federal and state officials worked to raise awareness about scammers attempting to profit off the country’s heightened need for testing.  

Aside from having their identities stolen, victims of fake testing schemes risk wasting money, spreading COVID-19 inadvertently, and delaying medical treatment when it is needed. According to the Better Business Bureau, people across the country complained supplying too much personal information for “tests” that never returned results or attempting to schedule appointments that never materialized, among other issues.  

At the time of writing, several state attorney general offices were looking into such accusations. Attorney General Letitia James, for example, was investigating a case in New York. Customers claimed that a Brooklyn-based vendor overcharged them for fast antigen and polymerase tests. 

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