Is a government text about a COVID payment or health rebate real?
Texts about health-related government payments are frequently used as phishing lures. Verify any payment claim through official government portals only.
Last reviewed: 1 August 2026
Explanation
Health emergency and pandemic-related payment fraud exploits the confusion created by genuine government relief programmes. Fake texts and emails claim you are entitled to a COVID rebate, health credit, or welfare payment, and direct you to a link to claim it. The site mimics government portals and harvests personal and banking details. Genuine government health payments are administered through existing benefit systems and tax authorities. If you are eligible, you are notified through your existing account or by post — not through unsolicited texts with payment links.
These campaigns work because they borrow credibility from genuine relief programmes people half-remember from news coverage. The message names a plausible-sounding payment, adds a deadline, and links to a page that reproduces official layouts and logos convincingly. Sender names on SMS can be spoofed to display a government-sounding label, so the apparent sender proves nothing. The page will typically ask for card or bank details 'to deposit your payment' — which is the reversal that gives the scam away, since receiving a genuine government payment never requires you to enter card details on a linked page.
The safe pattern is always the same: do not tap the link, and check any claimed entitlement by logging into your existing government, tax, or benefits account through the address you normally use. If you already entered details, contact your bank straight away to protect the card or account, change any passwords you reused, and report the message. Expect follow-up attempts — responding once marks your number as live.
Common red flags
- Unexpected text about a health payment or rebate you were not expecting
- Link to a site that is not an official government domain
- Requires banking details or card information to deposit the payment
- Urgency — offer expires soon
What to do now
- Do not click the link or enter any details
- Log into your relevant government account directly to check for genuine payments
- Report the text to your national health authority's fraud line
- Forward phishing texts to 7726 (UK/US) or the relevant authority
Frequently asked questions
How do genuine government health payments reach me?
Real payments are deposited automatically to your registered bank account or credited to your tax account. You should not need to take action based on an SMS link.
I entered my card details before realising — what should I do?
Contact your bank immediately so the card can be blocked and any attempted charges stopped. Change any passwords you entered, especially if you reuse them elsewhere, and report the message to your national fraud authority.
The sender name looked official — doesn't that mean it's genuine?
No. SMS sender labels can be spoofed to display almost any name, including government-sounding ones. Judge the message by what it asks you to do, not by who it appears to come from.