PSA Common Scams | Imamother

amother

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 3:40 pm

If someone calls you or emails you that your social security number will be suspended...
it's a scam.

If a Nigerian prince or any other unknown wealthy foreign character tells you that you have been selected to be beneficiaries of their will or charity...
it's a scam.

If someone claims that they can tell if you forward an email...
it's a scam.

If someone sends you a PDF that you didn't request, whether supposedly from an order you didn't make or any other source...
it's a scam.

If you get an email from a utility company or Amazon and you're not sure it's real, DON'T click on the link in the email. Go directly to their website and check out the info there. Don't call them on any number in the email. Find their contact info on their official website and call them there.

If you get a call from a loved one that they are kidnapped or arrested and need money transferred immediately, confirm that information before taking any action (call them directly, contact the school, etc.). It's hard not to fall for this one, because it's very convincing and preys on your fears, but it's just a scam.

If you find a brand-name product for less than half price on an unfamiliar website, it's almost certainly a knockoff or a total scam.

If someone contacts you and says he needs to remotely access your computer for any reason, it's almost certainly a scam. Get his ID number and call the company he claims to represent directly to confirm before handing over access.

BrachaVHatzlocha ↓

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 3:51 pm

I got a call from conEd last summer that I owed money and if I don't pay within 15 min, my electricity would be turned off ("I am outside your house"). They gave me a # to call back.
Luckily I googled the conEd # and was able to confirm it wasnt true....

amother

Sapphire

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 4:05 pm

If you get a call from your bank telling you your account has been frozen due to suspicious activity, call the bank directly use the number from the app/website, so you know it's legit). Once I got this sort of call on the 4th of July. I guess whatever foreign caller didn't realize that American banks are closed on that day and wouldn't be making phone calls to anyone lol.

ra_mom ↓

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 4:17 pm

amother OP wrote:

Great list!

↑ ra_mom

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 4:19 pm

The IRS does not call you to demand immediate payment or threaten to arrest you for not paying. Generally, if you owe a debt, the IRS will mail you a notice (usually many notices) first, about the debt owed. If someone calls and says they're from the IRS and you need to pay up now, it's a scam.

If an energy company calls and is trying to sound like they're calling from your energy provider (Con Edison), they are likely from another energy company and trying to convince you to switch to them (without you realizing that you're moving providers). They'll claim they can save you money. You'll end up worse off, with higher bills, and locked into a contract you can't get out of. It's a telemarketing trick.

*If someone calls and you're trying to figure out if they're a telemarketer or your account is actually with their company, ask them for your account number. If they can't provide you with your account number, that means they're trying to sell you something and you don't actually have an account with them.

Last edited by ra_mom on Mon, Sep 02 2024, 4:26 pm; edited 1 time in total

amother

Almond ↓

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 4:32 pm

Got this text from USPS:

Informed delivery: Your product has arrived at the US postal address. The address on the package is not detailed and cannot be delivered to your doorstep. Click on the link to fill in your shipping address. If it is not processed within the time limit, we will refund it to the merchant.

As it happened, I was expecting a package from them so I clicked on the link and it asked for my card. I got an error message so I entered a different card.

Long story short, after investigating and realizing it's a scam, I had to lock and change all the credit cards I used, and there were a few.

I'm so embarrassed that I fell for it. I'm in my upper 20s and consider myself fairly tech savy. But it can happen to anyone.

amother

↑ Nemesia ↓

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 4:37 pm

amother Almond wrote:

I got this many times.
First, I knew it was a scam since I never even ordered anything I was not expecting anything

amother

Navy ↓

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 4:38 pm

This is the scam we fell for. Some stranger wanted to pay for a service we had and sent us a check for more than he had told us over the phone. He then asked if we could PayPal him back the difference, which we did, as honest people. A day or so later we found out from the bank that the check was no good.
We lost about $600. The reason we fell for it although it felt so suspicious was because we were expecting a check from our mortgage bank, and it was the exact same bank the scammer sent a check from. I have no idea how he knew or maybe he got lucky. We only deposited it because it might have been from our mortgage.
On top of that, when we tried to recover our money back from PayPal, they told us it wouldn't be a problem but we had to wait a certain amount of days till all the transactions would go through. We called them every day, multiple times a day and they led us on and then broke their promise. They allowed our money to go to the scammer, and then charged us another $600 since there was a mixup with our payment method and they claimed we didn't have the funds for it. Since they had to use PayPal reserves to pay for us, they charged us the $600.
No matter how much we called and spoke to PayPal they were a brick wall. I haven't used PayPal since.

UQT

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 4:39 pm

Someone once called to say he’s from Amazon verifying that I just ordered a computer, monitor , printer and more totaling $8250.00 and if I can give him some info because they’re worried my account may have been compromised. I told him, thank you I did just order it.
Then I hung up and double checked my Amazon account and sure enough it wasn’t ordered. Complete scam.

amother

Oak

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 4:40 pm

Someone calls from immigration with a real name and badge number that cartels are using you name to purchase property and send packages. They want to help you prove your innocence.
After stringing me along for an hour they asked me to take out my money from my account and send it to them to protect. When I said no way they had the “police” call me.

amother

↑ Navy

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 4:43 pm

A recent scam:
We crossed a bridge on a small trip and paid a toll with an EZPass we borrowed. I received a text message saying I need to pay a toll and a link to pay. I almost clicked on it. I looked up the state tolls online and there was indeed an online website to pay tolls. But the link I received had an extra letter in its name and not the right one.

seeker ↓

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 6:00 pm

amother Fuchsia wrote:

Great PSA

Here's one I had today:
If you receive a text message from a random number saying that you have an unpaid parking fine please pay it now and a link it's a scam.

Oof that's a good one. I was just going to share I got a message about a toll but fortunately I'm on top of my toll accounts. But it's easier to believe you missed a parking ticket somewhere.

Not too hard to verify through official channels but it would have made me wonder seriously, unlike most scams which are easier to write off.

↑ seeker

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 6:01 pm

amother Almond wrote:

A great tip to verify whether an email is legit or not is to look at the senders address. If there are a bunch of random letters and numbers jumbled together, it's very likely a scam.

They're getting very good at faking, though. Some of the emails and websites sound real.

yiddishmom ↓

Mon, Sep 02 2024, 6:30 pm

amother Oak wrote:

Yes, I had this!

Took me a few min into the conversation to realize it's a scam.

I hung up before they asked for anything, and was wondering what their game plan is