KINGSTON, Jamaica — National Housing Trust (NHT) contributors are being urged to be extra vigilant of phishing attacks following reports of fraudulent emails claiming to be coming from the entity.

According to a release on Monday, the fictitious communication instructs recipients to verify their information by clicking on a link or attachment to receive their NHT contributions refund.

However, assistant general manager for Corporate Communications and Public Affairs at the NHT, Dwayne Berbick, said that email verification is not a method used by the Trust in the refund process.

“If there is a challenge with your application, you will get a notification from the NHT asking you to make direct contact with us. The process does not involve responding to an email or clicking on any attachment or link,” he said while addressing a recent forum.

The release revealed that multiple cases of falsified communication have been reported to the NHT since January 1, 2024, when the organisation began accepting refund applications for contributions made in 2016.

Berbick said that this trend is not new and is urging contributors to protect their personal information so that it does not fall into the wrong hands and to guard against becoming victims of other cybercrimes.

“The NHT’s refund process is safe. The scams and the schemes that we are seeing do not attack that process. They play on refunds being available and individuals are collecting it,” he pointed out.

“So, if you have received any kind of communication and you are in doubt, reach out to us for verification before you respond,” he advised.

The NHT has implemented several measures to communicate with and assist contributors in making their NHT refund applications safely and securely.

These include the mobile application that is available for download in the Apple and Google Play stores, the NHT Online portal that can be accessed at online.nht.gov.jm/ and the entity’s website, which can be found at www.nht.gov.jm.