Scammers Are Lurking
Guest Writer Venus Delcambre-Morris

Thanks to new and upcoming technology, credit and debit card fraud has seen a decrease in the last year. However, scams are still extremely prevalent, and scammers are lurking and looking for opportunities to help you part ways with your hard-earned money. Just when you think that you’ve heard it all, scammers come up with new and sophisticated ways to find more victims to fall for their schemes. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), in 2018, fraud accounted for the most reported crime and victim financial loss totaling $1.48 billion dollars! Yes, you read that right, billion! Many people don’t understand how anyone could fall for scams, but the truth of the matter is, that anyone can fall prey to a scammer. People fall for scams for all kinds of reasons and it doesn’t matter about your age, gender, type of work you do or how much money you make, these criminals have a “job,” and their job is to scam you out of your money. They’re good at what they do and they are persistent.

Despite the many attempts of media outlets, law enforcement and other government agencies to inform the public of these con artists, many are still unaware. There are hundreds of scams flooding the internet, reaching out to you by e-mail and phone. The tech support scam, student loan scam, jury duty scam, debt relief, lottery scams, travel scams, scams involving Medicare, funerals, mortgage, Craigslist, charities, rental scams and more!

Many scams such as the IRS Scam, involve people who impersonate someone who works for the agency. The most common way of contact is by phone where the number may be spoofed to look like someone who lives in the same general areas as you, or from the agency itself. Normally, you are asked to push a button to connect to a representative where you will then be told that you owe money and it needs to be paid immediately. If you receive this type of call, the first thing you will need to do is to verify that this is actually real. Think to yourself, do you really owe taxes, have you received a bill from the IRS in the mail, and why are they asking for payment? If you ever receive this call, hang up and call the IRS directly at 1-800-829-1040. The best thing to remember in this situation is that the IRS (no matter how adamant the caller is) does not call or e-mail. If you receive an e-mail from the IRS… delete it. If you open it, you may be opening yourself up to malicious malware. If you receive any type of unsolicited communication from the IRS, call them using the number above. Never give personal or payment information over the phone because once you do, the scammers have it.

Another scam that you may be unfamiliar with is the Grandparent Scam. Last year, this scam cost its victims over $41 million dollars. In this scam, the scammer plays on your sympathies and fears by portraying they’re a loved one (a grandchild is most often used), or a friend who has been in an accident arrested and jailed. They are in need of immediate funds to help pay what is due to the hospital, mechanic, or in most cases, bail money or payment to their lawyer. In most circumstance, these imposters do not know your name, the person they are impersonating, or anything about you. In fact, most often, you just happen to be someone who picked up the phone, and they will play off any name of who you think the caller might be. There are some cases where scammers came across you on social media and read the information that you put out for the public to see (make sure to check and change your privacy settings). Still a little confused how they can pull this off if they have no resemblance to the family member? The best way for them to get to their victim is by putting you in an emotional tailspin where you would want to do anything for them. Even if their voice sounds different, once they have you emotionally wrapped around their finger, any doubt you are feeling will begin to fade away. They will tell you that the change in their voice will be due to crying, an illness like a cold, or an injury that they suffered. If you ever get a call from someone claiming to be a loved one and they are in urgent need of money, start asking questions that only you and your loved one would know. Call a family member or someone who runs in that person’s circle and verify the information. Generally, these thieves will request that you send money through Money Gram, Western Union, money order or check. No matter how desperate the caller may seem, please investigate before you send money.

There are numerous other scams on the rise, for instance, the Romance Scam in which over $143 million dollars has been reported to have been lost. The romance scam consists of men and women who find love with an unsuspected predator who, in most cases falls for you quickly and adorns you with words of love. In many of these instances, the victims will find their love online on popular social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter or dating websites. Most of these scams are started overseas with lots of communication by texts, e-mails and phone calls. The relationship starts off innocently enough until your sweetheart is in desperate need of cash due to being arrested, ill, money being held in a business deal gone wrong, or to pay for a ticket home. These scammers are generally “trapped” overseas because they’ve lost their passport and other identification documents, or the police or a business associate demands money in order to settle debts, or to pay for new documents. They may have you send money through Western Union or ask you to open up a bank account. However, before falling for this scam, still your heart and start investigating your “love.” Yes, it’s not the most romantic thing to do, but it can save you thousands of dollars. Don’t send money to someone who you have never met, talk to friends about your romance to get a clearer perspective, and if your lover says that they are stuck overseas, refer them to the U.S Embassy Consulate for help. And, if you have met your suitor on an online dating site and realize that they trying to scam you, make sure to report it to that website.

Another scam that is on the upsurge is the Social Security Scam. This scam has been on the move since 2017 but has recently become popular due to the amount of fraudulent calls that have been ringing phones around the country. In this scam, you are told that your SSN has been used for criminal activity and that you will need to verify your SSN in order to keep it from being suspended and deactivated. They will then try and persuade you that the money in your bank account is in danger, and that the best way to protect it is to transfer it to a gift card. Before you do, please note that the Social Security Administration will never threaten or bribe you into giving them your sensitive information or ask you to put money on any form of   payment or gift card. If the scammer convinces you to purchase the card they will then try and get you to reveal the code in which they will be able to use the card to purchase items to sale or for themselves and your money will be gone. If you ever get a call that shows up on your caller I.D. that says it is from the  SSA, don’t answer. Call the SSA using this number 1-800-772-1213. If you ever take a call from someone who claims they are from the SSA and tries to persuade you to give personal information, hang up and report the fraud to 1-800-269-0271.

And last but not least on the list of never ending and rising scams is the Sextortion Scam. This scam has attacked over 200 million e-mails in 2018 hoping to find victims that will open and fall prey to its content. The subject line of your e-mail may say that your information has been attacked, or it may have a line such as, “I know who you are,” or “I know your secret.” Once opened, it could contain an attached malware virus that could infect your computer. Seconds into reading the e-mail, you may experience fear as the scammer reveals that he has access to your webcam and has embarrassing or compromising videos of you. The e-mail will continue that if you do not pay up in a specified amount of time that the information they have will not only be shared with all of your e-mail contacts, but will also go viral. You may begin to feel some anxiety and your mind will be racing, you can’t fathom what they possibly have but you are scared. If you ever receive an e-mail like this, don’t panic, don’t pay, don’t contact them and delete the e-mail! Though hacking into a computer and your webcam accessed can be done, the likelihood that it has happened is less than minimal. These con-artists send out thousands of e-mails looking for someone to take the bait. They don’t know you and have absolutely nothing on you. If you recognize any of the information that they have included in the e-mail, the chances are that they obtained that information from some data breach from a company or website that you have done business with. In the chance that a password or e-mail provided by the scammer is something that you are currently using, change it. Remember that the purpose of a scam is to frighten you out of your money! If you’re still looking for peace of mind regarding any of your information being used in the scammers e-mail, make sure to look for a reputable identity monitoring site and consider signing up for free monitoring from one of the major consumer credit bureaus such as Equifax, Experian or TransUnion.

There are so many scams plaguing the internet, our phones and e-mails that it is hard to keep up with constant barrage but it is important to report all fraud. If you receive scam calls, e-mails or letters in the mail, report it by giving that information to the FTC at 1-877-382-4357, or file a complaint at https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/#crnt&panel1-1. You can also turn in information to other fraud tracking sites such as the Better Business Bureau at https://www.bbb.org/scamtracker/us/. If you have been scammed and have given out confidential information such as your social security number, credit or debit card information, have sent cash, and/or have been threatened with arrest and the individual identifies themselves as law enforcement, please report this information to Crime Check at 509-456-2233. NO ONE from law enforcement, or the Spokane County District Court is going to call you demanding payment.

Remember, anyone can become a victim of fraud. Reporting any and all fraud can help others from falling for these con-artists. Please spread the word by talking to friends, neighbors and relatives and let’s stop these criminals in their tracks!

QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS ARTICLE CAN BE DIRECTED TO DEPUTY David Morris OF THE CRIME PREVENTION UNIT OF THE SPOKANE COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: DWMorris@SpokaneSheriff.org