UM Health-Sparrow is committed to the security and privacy of our patients. Criminals sometimes pretend to be hospitals, clinics, doctors' offices, insurance companies, or other health care organizations to try to steal money or personal information.
Current 2026 Scam Alerts
We have received reports of scammers calling patients, identifying themselves as part of UM Health-West, and requesting personal and financial information.
Nationwide, there are reports of scammers sending fake emails designed to look like they are from MyChart or MySparrow patient portal.
Scammers may contact you by:
- Phone call
- Text message
- Social media
- Fake websites
They may pretend to be from our health system or another trusted organization.
Always be careful when sharing personal information.
Warning Signs of a Scam
A scammer may ask for:
- Social Security numbers
- Bank account information
- Credit card numbers
- Passwords
- Patient portal login information
Be careful if someone:
- Creates a sense of urgency
- Threatens you
- Demands immediate payment
- Asks for gift cards or cryptocurrency
- Requests passwords or login information
- Wants your Social Security number without a clear reason
- Asks you to click an unexpected link
- Refuses to let you verify their identity
- Says you must keep the conversation secret
If something does not feel right, stop and verify before responding.
How to Check if a Message Is Real
Contact our UM Health-Sparrow Customer Service Department office to verify information about billing or payment.
If you receive a phone call
- Scammers have the ability to “spoof” a phone number to make it appear like it is coming from the hospital. Do not trust a phone number given by the caller.
- Call us back using a phone number listed on our website, bill, MySparrow patient portal, or appointment paperwork.
If you receive a text message
- Do not click links right away.
- Go directly to our official website or patient portal.
- Compare the information with messages already in your account.
If you receive an email
- Look carefully at the sender's email address.
- Watch for spelling errors or unusual requests.
- Do not open attachments from unknown senders.
- Visit our website directly instead of clicking links in suspicious emails.
If you visit a website
- Make sure the web address is correct.
- Look for "https://" at the beginning of the site address.
- Be cautious of websites that ask for sensitive information unexpectedly.
What We Will Never Ask You To Do
University of Michigan Health-Sparrow will never ask you to:
- Pay with gift cards, cryptocurrency, or prepaid debit cards
- Share your patient portal password
- Share one-time security codes sent to your phone or email
- Provide sensitive information through an unsolicited email or text message
- Send money to "fix" a problem with your account
If You Think You Have Been Targeted by a Scam
If you believe someone pretending to represent University of Michigan Health contacted you:
- Stop communicating with the person.
- Do not send money.
- Do not provide personal information.
- If you shared financial information, contact your bank or credit card company immediately.
- Contact our MySparrow support team for additional information about safely accessing the MySparrow patient portal.
- Report any suspicious calls, emails or phishing attempts to University of Michigan Health-Sparrow Public Safety 517-364-2000.