Greg's Corner

Scam Round Up: Student loan forgiveness scam and more

By Greg Collier

Today, we’re brining you three scams that we’ve discussed in the past, but are worth discussing again as a reminder.

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Student loan payments were temporarily suspended by the government and were expected to resume this past January 31st. However, the government extended the deadline once again to the beginning of May. This entire time, scammers have been out in full force, trying to pull the wool over the eyes of those who are looking for student debt relief. Scammers are calling those with student debt promising loan forgiveness. Some scammers are even trying to disguise themselves as government associated entities. These scammers are mainly out to steal your personal and financial information. Scammers will also try to pressure you into giving your information by saying that their offer is only available for a short time. Keep in mind that no legitimate agency that can offer debt forgiveness is going to solicit you.

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With the employment culture shifting more to working from home, more scams are trying to take advantage of any disconnects between employer and employee. Some scammers are finding out where people work and are posing as their bosses. The scammers will send text messages or emails posing as a home worker’s boss and asking them to do certain assignments. Typically, these assignments involve money such as buying gift cards, wiring money, or even changing someone’s direct deposit for their paychecks. If you receive one of these messages, it never hurts to contact your boss directly over the phone before responding to any of the messages.

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Lastly, we’ve seen reports again about consumers receiving phone calls that threaten to shut off their electricity. In this scam, the scammers will pose as your local power company and tell you that your account is past due, and they’ll terminate your service if you don’t pay immediately. The scammers will then ask for payment in things like gift cards, pre-paid debit cards, or in some cases, will even try to direct you to a Bitcoin ATM. No utility company will ever threaten you with termination of service over the phone. If your account is past due, you would be notified in the mail before service would be shut off.

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Hopefully, this little refresher course will help you avoid these and other scams in the future.