Unmute
Spread the Word to Amplify Awareness!
Stay in the Know: First, get to know the popular scams out there. If you recognize the signs, you'll be ahead of the game.- Verify, Verify, and Verify Some More: If someone's asking you to wire money - whether over the phone or via email - double-check with them directly through a different trusted channel. Big transactions coming up? Buying a house? Meet them in person or give them a call on a number that you know is legit.
- Caller ID Can Be Tricky: Just because the caller ID says it's your bank doesn't mean it is. Scammers can fake those so don’t trust a phone call just because the Caller ID looks correct.
- Voice Cloning. Picture getting a call from your mom, dad, or banker. They sound spot on, but something's off—they're asking for money. With today's tech, scammers can clone voices. So even if it sounds like someone you trust, always double-check. Hang up and call them back on a number you trust.
- Use Multi-What Now?: Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA). It adds an extra step or two to ensure it's genuinely you logging in or making a transaction. If you haven't enabled it yet, activate MFA on your email, bank, mobile carrier, and honestly, anywhere else you can. Here’s a quick MFA guide to help you get started.
- Stay Chill: Is someone rushing you or making you feel pressured to take action? Red flag. Scammers love making things feel urgent so we’ll act from emotion instead of calmly with logical reasoning. Stop the communication and step back, talk it out with a trusted friend, and then decide the best course of action.
Wire fraud scams come in all shapes and sizes. Here are a handful of common ones you might come across:
- Rental Scams: Picture this. A con artist lists a place for rent, right? Places they've never even stepped foot in. They lure folks in with juicy discounts, and then bam! Ask for a depost by wire transfer without even showing the property.
- Job Scams: This one's a classic. They pretend to offer you a job but ask you to buy training materials or pay for running background checks. Or even crazier, they send you a check, ask you to deposit it and send a part back, only to have the check bounce later.
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- Romance Scams: Ah, matters of the heart. Scammers act all sweet and charming online, maybe on dating sites or social media. They weave this web of lies, and before you know it, they're asking for money for emergencies, trips, or who knows what.
- Tax Scams: This one's tricky. You get a call or email from someone acting like they're from the tax office. They say you owe back taxes and that they'll take you to court unless you pay up pronto.
- Mortgage Closing Scams: Here fraudsters pose as real estate pros. They hit up homebuyers about last-minute changes to the deal and tell them to wire money to this "new" account, which, spoiler alert, is theirs.
- Overpayment Scams: You're selling something online. The buyer sends you a check for more than the price as a ‘mistake’ and asks you to wire back the extra. Sounds fishy, right? Because it is. The check's fake, and it's gonna bounce.
Share "Personal Safety"
- Close the door - change passwords, block or cut off all contact, block other apps, lock down profiles, and don’t open any new messages from the scammer.
- Report the scam to law enforcement agencies.
- Beware of follow up scams - sadly scammers will sell their lists of victims to other scammers, so be on the lookout for more attempts to scam or hack into your accounts.
