From Iceland — Fraudster Posing As Icelandic UNICEF Official Hands Out Fake Jobs

Fraudster Posing As Icelandic UNICEF Official Hands Out Fake Jobs

Published April 21, 2020

Poppy Askham
Photo by
RentVine/Creative Commons

An internet fraudster posing as the head of recruitment at the Icelandic branch of UNICEF is offering people a job as the new head of finance through LinkedIn. The individual falsely claims that the role’s current incumbent has died from COVID-19.

UNICEF á Íslandi has issued a warning on Facebook that it had received numerous tips that a foreign individual has been advertising the role of head of finance for UNICEF in Iceland. The posts were made by a fraudster who has no link with UNICEF. The messages claimed that a number of UNICEF employees were suffering from COVID-19 and that the current chief of finance had died from the virus.

These reports are false. UNICEF á Íslandi confirms that the CFO is “blessed with good health” and that they “have no interest in replacing him”.

The motive behind this bizarre hoax is not yet known. The fraudster appears to be encouraging people to open documents and log on to a website. UNICEF does not know what the individual wants to do with the information they obtain, but is certain that they are “doing nothing good with [it]”. Recipients of the messages are urged not to respond or follow any instructions.

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