RALEIGH, N.C. — People should disregard e-mails urging them
to register personal information on an H1N1 flu vaccine registry with the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, health officials warned Wednesday.
The registry is bogus, and people who try to send the
information to the CDC may instead get a virus installed on their computers.
CDC officials have posted a warning about the e-mail scam on
their Web page, and officials urged people to beware of e-mail solicitations
that ask for personal or medical information.
It’s unclear how widespread the phony registration e-mails
are, but Dr. Megan Davies, North Carolina’s state epidemiologist, said it is
similar to false rumors that the federal government was going to mandate H1N1
vaccinations for everyone.
“That’s not correct, but it plays into those
perceptions,” she said.
The vaccination program for the H1N1 virus has been a target
of rumor, misinformation and hyperbole from the start.
Some questioned the safety of the vaccine, although it was
formulated and manufactured identically to seasonal flu vaccines, and studies
showed no unusual problems. Then production difficulties at vaccine plants
caused deliveries to arrive slower than promised, fueling criticism about the
government’s ability to respond in the face of a health threat.
Via McClatchy-Tribune News Service.
