Is Kenya Government giving Ksh 15,000 to its people during this time of Covid-19?

FALSE: Kenya government is not giving out Ksh 15000 to its people during this time of Covid

19 which is called Government Lockdown Fund.

This information is not true since there is no such activity taking place in the country right now under that name.

The same message, promising to credit relief money from ‘Government Lockdown Funds’ directly into users’ bank accounts, has also been shared on Tweeter and WhatsApp.

The post shares a link to a site where applicants are asked to complete a survey in order to get the funds. The site also uses the Nigerian Court of Arms as its icon, indicating that it has been used elsewhere, possibly for an identical scam.

The applicants are required to state whether they are Kenyan citizens, what amount of money they need to sustain them through the lockdown period, and how they will utilize the funds requested.

CyberSpace Kenya, an organisation involved in digital security and online safety in Kenya, told PesaCheck that the domain name shares an IP address with a number of other scam sites. The organisation has in the past flagged a number of other scam sites, including ramaphosafoundation.xyz, freemobiledata.xyz, proceed01.xyz, and uhurukenyattafoundation.xyz.

To avoid phishing attacks on social media, one should refrain from clicking links from unfamiliar or questionable websites and accounts. Anti-phishing security software, including antivirus software that warns users or automatically blocks fake sites if one accidentally visits them, can also help.

PesaCheck has looked into the authenticity of a site offering KSh 15,000 from the Government of Kenya’s Lockdown Funds through an online application process and finds it to be a HOAX.

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