Recognizing Common Scams

Some scammers may try to trick you into sending them money through a mobile payment app. This a common tactic because it’s hard for you to get your money back once it’s sent.

In a card cracking scam, the scammer convinces the victim to share their debit card or bank account information to withdraw fraudulent check deposits. The storylines can vary: For example, the scammer may tell you someone needs help buying a car but needs an account to deposit a check and withdraw the funds.

Scammers may pose as a family member, friend or business representative in need of something urgent. You will typically be contacted by phone, email or social media and told to take immediate action.

Tech support scams typically involve a scammer who tries to trick you into giving them remote access to your computer or to pay them for unnecessary services. The scammers often use high-pressure tactics to get you to act quickly and may even threaten to delete your files or disable your computer if you don’t comply.

A loan scam involves a loan being offered under false pretenses. The scammer often hooks their target by making a big promise they can’t deliver on, or by hiding the actual cost of the loan. Loan scammers even use fake company logos, false caller ID numbers and other tricks to impersonate legitimate agencies and gain trust.

This scam involves soliciting people for a "lucrative" position that allows them to work from home or as an independent agent.

These scams hijack normally safe QR codes and send you to phishing websites that steal your financial information or other personal information.

Scammers send fake text messages to trick you into giving them your personal information, such as a password, account number or Social Security number.

These scams occur when a criminal adopts a fake online identity to gain a victim's affection and trust. The scammer then uses the illusion of a romantic or close relationship to manipulate and steal from the victim. They will seem genuine, caring and believable, and the effort to gain trust could last months or years. The scammer then uses the relationship to persuade the victim to give money, personal and financial information, or items of value to the scammer. Fraudsters may refer to an overseas lottery or inheritance, or ask for check cashing assistance, and they often ask for money via prepaid cards or wire transfers.

An account takeover is a type of identity theft in which a criminal steals the valid online banking credentials of a business or individual and then uses those credentials to initiate funds transfers out of the account. Cybercriminals generally purchase a list of credentials via the dark web. They use these credentials to deploy bots that automatically access travel, retail, finance and social media sites to test password and username combinations and attempt to log in. Attackers arrive at a list of verified credentials and make a profit by selling these credentials to other people or by defrauding the account.