The digital age has brought countless opportunities for remote work, but it has also opened the door to sophisticated scams that exploit jobseekers. According to new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) data, online job scams, especially those known as ‘task scams’, have seen a sharp rise, accompanied by devastating financial losses for victims.
Task scams, a relatively new phenomenon, have surged dramatically in recent years. In 2020, there were no reported cases of these scams, but by 2023, reports had climbed to 5,000. In the first half of 2024 alone, reports skyrocketed to approximately 20,000. In just the first six months of 2024, reported losses to job scams exceeded $220 million, with task scams estimated to account for nearly 40% of those cases.
The mechanics of task scams are alarmingly deceptive. They often begin with an unsolicited message via text or messaging apps, offering vague opportunities to earn money online. Respondents are typically introduced to tasks such as ‘app optimization’ or ‘product boosting’. To build trust, victims may receive small payouts for initial tasks, giving the impression of a legitimate arrangement. However, the scam escalates when victims are asked to invest their own money, typically in cryptocurrency, to complete additional tasks, with promises of higher returns. Once the money is sent, it is never recovered.
The FTC’s data underscores the urgency of staying wary of these scams. Consumers are advised to be wary of unsolicited messages offering vague job opportunities. Legitimate employers rarely initiate contact through text or messaging apps, and no credible job will require payment to receive payment. Additionally, offers to rate or ‘like’ online content for compensation should be treated with skepticism, as they are often illegal and a hallmark of fraudulent schemes.
As job scams evolve in scale and sophistication, raising awareness is critical. By understanding the tactics employed by scammers and recognizing the warning signs, individuals can better protect themselves from falling victim to these predatory schemes. While technology has revolutionized the job market, it also calls for heightened caution to navigate its risks safely.
In the quiet town of Prescott, Wisconsin, a woman’s financial nightmare began with what appeared to be a legitimate email from Apple. The message warned her that her IP address had been compromised, prompting her to call a number provided. That call set off a chain of events that ultimately drained her retirement savings, costing her more than $430,000. The funds, which she converted into gold bars at the direction of scammers, vanished without a trace.
Her story is one of nearly 50 reported cases in Wisconsin, where victims have collectively lost approximately $13 million to similar scams. These schemes are highly sophisticated, targeting older individuals with significant savings by exploiting their trust in well-known companies and government agencies.
The email appeared harmless, a routine security alert from Apple. Trusting the brand, the woman dialed the number provided and was connected to someone claiming to be the head of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The imposter warned her that her identity had been stolen, and her bank accounts were at risk. To protect her funds, he advised her to liquidate her savings and purchase gold bars. These, he assured her, would be safeguarded by the Federal Reserve.
The scammers maintained an air of urgency, keeping constant contact and coaching her to lie to bank tellers, claiming she was helping a family member with business investments. After purchasing the gold, couriers arrived at her home to collect it. They promised the gold was secure, but it was gone for good.
In this instance, couriers were pivotal. Tasked with retrieving the gold bars, they traveled extensively, their movements spanning multiple states. Fortunately, some were apprehended during coordinated sting operations, but these arrests only touched the surface of a broader, more insidious network. Such schemes often originate overseas, beyond the reach of local law enforcement.
For victims, justice offers little consolation. The Prescott woman has yet to recover a dime of her stolen savings, and the chances of restitution are slim. The emotional and financial toll persists, leaving her fearful of even basic financial activities.
Scammers often impersonate trusted brands like Apple or even government officials to manipulate their victims. It’s crucial to remember that legitimate companies such as Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Facebook will never tell you if your bank account has been compromised. They do not have access to that information. Likewise, the FTC and its officials will never demand immediate financial actions or direct you to purchase gold.
If you receive a suspicious call or email, hang up or delete it immediately. Contact the company or organization directly using verified contact information from their official website. If someone claims to be from your bank, end the call and dial your bank’s official number to confirm the legitimacy of the request. Scammers rely on fear and urgency, but taking a moment to verify can protect you from becoming their next victim.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has issued a warning to college students and their parents about a growing scam that targets those paying tuition. Imagine receiving a call from someone claiming to be from your school’s financial aid office, telling you that your tuition bill hasn’t been paid. The caller might threaten to drop your classes unless you send money immediately. While this may cause alarm, it’s essential to pause and think carefully, you could be dealing with a scammer.
These scammers pose as school officials, often claiming that financial aid has fallen through or that your transcripts are being held until the balance is paid. Their goal is to create a sense of urgency, pressuring you to act without verifying the legitimacy of the claim. However, a legitimate school office would never try to scare you into making a payment over the phone.
If you receive such a call, it’s crucial not to panic. Scammers rely on the fear of missing out on classes or having academic records withheld to trick you into making hasty decisions. Instead of responding immediately, take the time to verify the situation through secure channels. Most schools post tuition bills on secure student portals, where you can safely check your balance and make payments. If you’re still uncertain, contact the financial aid or billing office directly using a phone number you know is legitimate.
Remember, scammers can manipulate caller ID to make it appear as if the call is coming from your campus. Don’t trust what you see on the screen, and never give out your bank or credit card information over the phone to an unknown caller. If someone pressures you to pay with cryptocurrency, wire transfers, or gift cards, it’s almost certainly a scam.
The FTC urges anyone who encounters this scam to report it. By spreading the word, you can help protect others from falling victim to these deceptive tactics. Always verify through trusted sources before making any payments, especially when it comes to something as important as education.
One of the most sensitive pieces of personal information is a Social Security number. If a malicious individual were to obtain someone’s Social Security number through illegal means, it could lead to financial devastation due to identity theft. While identity theft is a serious crime, it is important to note, as per the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), that no one can commit a crime using your Social Security number alone. This might sound perplexing, so let us clarify.
The FTC recently issued a warning about impersonation scams. As the name suggests, these scams involve scammers pretending to be a government agency to extort money from their victims. In this case, scammers are impersonating the Social Security Administration (SSA).
Scammers will call their victims, claiming to be from the SSA, while spoofing the SSA’s phone number on caller ID. They tell the victim that their Social Security number has been used in a crime, such as money laundering or drug trafficking, and that an arrest warrant has been issued for the Social Security cardholder.
However, the scammers will pretend to want to help the victim. They advise the victims to protect their money from being seized by law enforcement by withdrawing it from the bank and converting it to gold. Then, an “agent” of the SSA will come by to collect the gold for safekeeping.
In the FTC’s latest warning, they emphasize that this is nothing more than a scam. They clarify that no one can use your Social Security number to commit crimes in your name. They also stress that anyone who instructs you to buy gold, withdraw cash, and give it to someone is a scammer.
If someone receives a call like this, the FTC advises them to hang up and report it on the FTC’s Report Fraud webpage. They also recommend that if someone is coming to your home to collect money or gold, you should contact your local police department.
When student loans weigh heavily on many, news of relief is often met with both hope and skepticism. Unfortunately, for over 27,000 borrowers, hope turned into despair as they fell prey to a scam that promised relief but delivered only financial ruin. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently announced that it’s sending over $4.1 million in refunds to student loan borrowers who were deceived by scammers.
The perpetrators of this deceitful scheme found themselves at the center of an FTC complaint filed in 2019. The scam was as cunning as it was heartless. They promised to lower monthly student loan payments and offered to take over loan servicing, all while siphoning off hundreds to thousands of dollars in illegal upfront fees from unsuspecting borrowers.
Instead of easing the financial burden, these scammers exacerbated it. The FTC revealed that only a fraction of the payments made by borrowers was actually applied to their loans, if any at all. The rest was pocketed by the fraudulent operators, leaving borrowers not only out of pocket but deeper in debt.
As anticipated, it’s sadly predictable that scammers will also target those receiving these refunds. Scammers are often quick to exploit the confusion and desperation of borrowers.
The warning signs are clear. Unsolicited calls or emails pressuring borrowers to ‘act immediately,’ promises of being ‘flagged for forgiveness,’ or programs claiming to be ‘first come, first served’ should all raise red flags. In an era where information is abundant, but trust is scarce, borrowers must exercise caution and diligence.
The Education Department’s website stands as a beacon of reliable guidance amidst the sea of misinformation. Detailed resources on federal student loan forgiveness programs offer borrowers a roadmap to navigating the complex terrain of student loan relief.
We firmly believe that no one is immune to falling for a scam. Regardless of someone’s socioeconomic status or level of education, they can still be targeted. Every individual is vulnerable to scams; there’s no exception.
If there was to be an exception, it should be a renowned and successful financial advice columnist. But even someone in such a position can fall prey to a scam if placed under sufficient pressure from the scammer.
It’s unfortunate but not uncommon for even those well-versed in finance to fall victim to scams. Take Charlotte Cowles, a financial advice columnist for The Cut, a division of New York Magazine, for example. Last Halloween, she received a call from someone posing as an Amazon customer service representative. They claimed she had made an $8000 purchase of Apple products, which she hadn’t. Ms. Cowles wisely checked her Amazon account, finding no such transactions. However, the scammer had a response ready, alleging that a business account was opened in her name. Despite her vigilance, Ms. Cowles was convinced her identity had been compromised.
Continuing the conversation, the fake Amazon representative exploited the situation further, claiming that the company was facing widespread issues with identity theft among its customers. To add credibility, they mentioned having a liaison within the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Ms. Cowles, concerned about the apparent threat to her identity, agreed to be connected to the supposed FTC agent.
The deceptive FTC impostor already possessed personal details about Ms. Cowles, including the last four digits of her Social Security number, her home address, and her date of birth. With such sensitive information in hand, it’s understandable why a victim might be inclined to trust the fraudulent claims being made. This level of sophistication can make the scam appear legitimate and increase the victim’s susceptibility to manipulation.
In addition to the personal details already disclosed, the counterfeit FTC representative went on to fabricate a dire scenario, claiming that numerous bank accounts, vehicles, and properties were registered under Ms. Cowles’ name. Adding to the distressing narrative, they alleged that a car linked to her identity had been discovered near the Texas-Mexico border, rented in her name, and found containing illicit drugs. These false claims likely intensified Ms. Cowles’ sense of urgency and fear, further blurring the line between truth and deception.
The deceitful tactics didn’t stop there. Ms. Cowles was informed by the scammer that arrest warrants had been issued against her in multiple states, accusing her of serious crimes such as drug trafficking and money laundering.
To further isolate their victim and maintain control, the fraudulent FTC agent instructed Ms. Cowles not to disclose the situation to anyone, cautioning her that anyone she confided in could potentially be a suspect in the fabricated crimes.
Despite the fraudulent claims and attempts to exploit her, Ms. Cowles was led to believe that the FTC was there to safeguard her finances. When asked how much money she would require to sustain herself for a year, she stated $50,000. Shockingly, the impostor instructed her to withdraw this amount in cash from her bank and assured her that it would be collected from her residence by a supposed CIA agent. Even during the withdrawal process, there were warnings. The bank teller, sensing something amiss, cautioned Ms. Cowles about potential scams associated with large cash withdrawals.
Under the false pretext of protecting her identity, Ms. Cowles was instructed to hand over the withdrawn cash to the supposed CIA agent, who would then allegedly provide her with a new government check issued under a new Social Security number.
As instructed, Ms. Cowles handed over the box containing the $50,000 to the driver of an SUV with tinted windows that pulled up to her residence.
Ms. Cowles’s experience highlights the profound emotional toll inflicted by falling victim to scammers. In her account, she vividly expresses the overwhelming sense of shame that washed over her upon realizing she had been deceived. This aspect is crucial because it underscores the psychological impact that financial scams can have on individuals, often extending far beyond the immediate financial loss. The shame and self-blame experienced by victims like Ms. Cowles serve as a poignant reminder of the need for compassion and support for those who have been targeted by fraudsters.
We urge you to take the time to read Ms. Cowles’s comprehensive narrative of the scam in her latest column.
Ms. Cowles’s account serves as a powerful reminder that no one is immune to the threat of scams. Regardless of our education, background, or financial status, we are all susceptible to being deceived. By sharing her experience, she highlights the importance of remaining vigilant and informed in the face of evolving tactics employed by fraudsters. Let her story be a call to action for all of us to educate ourselves, support one another, and work together to combat the scourge of scams in our communities.
AI-generated voice cloning, or voice spoofing, scams have become such a nuisance, the federal government is turning to the people to help solve the problem. If you’re unfamiliar with AI-voice generation technology, there are apps and programs that can take a short sample of anyone’s voice and make that voice say whatever you want it to. The benefit of it is it can give people who lost their speaking ability a voice. However, every tool that’s made for the good of mankind can also be used to its detriment.
Scammers use cloned voices in what are known as emergency scams. Emergency scams can be broken down into two categories, for the most part, the grandparent scam, and the virtual kidnapping scam. In both sets of scams, the scammers need to convince their victim one of the victim’s loved ones is in some sort of peril. In the case of the grandparent scam, the scammer will try to convince the victim their loved one is in jail and needs bail money. While in the virtual kidnapping scam, the scammers try to convince the victim their loved one has been kidnapped for ransom.
Scammers will take a sample of someone’s voice, typically from a video that’s been posted to social media. Then, they’ll use the voice cloning technology to make it sound like that person is in a situation that requires the victim to send money.
Voice cloning has become such a problem, the Federal Trade Commission has issued a challenge to anyone who thinks they can develop some kind of voice cloning detector. The top prize winner can receive $25,000, the runner-up can get $4000, while three honorable mentions can get $2000.
In their own words, the FTC has issued this challenge to help push forward ideas to mitigate risks upstream—shielding consumers, creative professionals, and small businesses against the harms of voice cloning before the harm reaches a consumer.
The online submission portal can be found at this link, and submissions will be accepted from January 2 to 12, 2024.
Hopefully, someone can come up with the right idea to better help consumers from losing their money to these scammers.
We’ve said in the past that if you’ve been scammed once, the odds are pretty good that you’ll be targeted by scammers again. Except, it doesn’t typically happen in one day. That’s what happened to one Texas senior who not only lost $75,000 to scammers, but they continued to plague her afterwards.
It all started when she received a call from someone offering to install an antivirus program on her computer. The victim says she needed this for her computer, but in order to do so, the caller needed remote access to her computer. Right off the bat, the scammers are starting with the tech support scam. If the scammers aren’t saying they’re installing software, they’re telling you that you have a virus on your computer. Once scammers have access to a victim’s device, there’s an untold amount of havoc that can be wreaked using the victim’s personal information.
But getting back to the story, the woman then received a message on her computer that said her Amazon account had been hacked, and she needed to call the listed phone number. Now, the scammers are following up with the Amazon scam. This is where scammers claim to be from Amazon and that there is something wrong with your account. This is done to either get your payment information, or the scammers will try to convince you that you need to ‘move your money’ to avoid being hacked.
While on the phone with the fake Amazon representative, the victim was then told she was being transferred to the Federal Trade Commission. Not only did the scammers pretend to be with the FTC, but they pretended to be the current FTC chairwoman. This is what’s known as the government impersonation scam. Scammers will pose as anyone from local police to the chairs of federal commissions if they think they can intimidate their victims. Unfortunately, this is not the first instance we’ve seen of scammers posing as high-ranking government officials.
The phony FTC chairwoman threatened the victim with arrest if she didn’t comply with her demands. The victim was told that someone was selling drugs and laundering money through her bank account. To ‘clean’ her money, the victim would need to wire it to the scammers posing as FBI agents.
Again, when someone who is not familiar with how online activity works, it can be quite easy to fall for such a scam. However, there are tips to keep you or a relative safe. The first is not to allow anyone you don’t know personally to install software on your device, or give them remote access. Anyone calling to offer software is more than likely a scammer. Also, if your computer runs Windows 10 or 11, they have built-in security software already.
If Amazon is calling or your device says you need to call them, it’s a scam. Amazon, or any other company, does not know the status of your device, nor do they know your banking activity. If any company besides your bank says there’s a problem with your bank account, they’re probably trying to scam you.
Lastly, no legitimate government agency or law enforcement branch is going to threaten you with arrest over the phone. Neither will they ever ask you to move your money to ‘clean’ it, whatever that means.
A woman from Rochester, Minnesota, recently lost thousands of dollars to scammers. It started when the woman received a robocall that claimed to be from Amazon. The recording said that she had been charged for several Amazon purchases, and to press 1 if she did not make them. After she pressed 1, someone claiming to be an Amazon representative spoke to her. The caller said that they would speak to her bank about the charges.
Not too long after that call, the woman received another call from someone claiming to be with the Federal Trade Commission. This caller told her that her identity had been stolen. The caller told the woman to protect her money, she would need to withdraw the money from her bank account. However, she was told not to contact police, or she could be accused of money laundering. She was then instructed to deposit the money into a Bitcoin ATM that was at a gas station. The victim lost $7,000 in total.
This scam has a lot of moving parts, but each one is a red flag if you know what to look for. For example, Amazon does not call customers about fraudulent charges. Even on Amazon’s own help page, they say that if you received any communication about a charge you didn’t make, it likely didn’t come from Amazon. If you receive any communication like this, first check your Amazon account for any fraudulent charges. If there are any fraudulent charges, you can dispute them with Amazon, but you need to make first contact. Amazon will not call you.
While the FTC is a branch of the Department of Justice, they typically do not call consumers to let them know they’ve been a victim of identity theft. Unfortunately, identity theft is usually only detected by the victim and not law enforcement. Also, no government or law enforcement agency will ever call you and threaten you with arrest while supposedly trying to assist you. If someone tells you to not contact the police, your best bet is to contact the police immediately.
Lastly, no government entity is going to ask you to move your money to Bitcoin, especially if the Bitcoin ATM is at a gas station. While cryptocurrencies may have gained a modicum of mainstream acceptance, it’s nowhere near the point where the government is using it as a consumer protection platform.
Recently, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has warned consumers they’ve seen a rise in scammers using cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. Traditionally, scammers usually lean toward trying to collect money from their victims through means like gift cards and money transfers. That’s because gift cards and money transfers are things that most people understand. Meanwhile, if you say cryptocurrency to most consumers, you’ll get a puzzled look. However, the FTC says that scammers have come up with a new and easy way to get victims to pay in cryptocurrency.
According to the FTC, scammers are now getting their victims to scan QR Codes with their phones. Once a victim scams the QR Code with their phone, the victim just paid the scammer in cryptocurrency. Fortunately, there’s a process that needs to take place before scanning the code that should tip you off that you’re being scammed. The FTC warning states that the scammers will try to get you to go to a Bitcoin ATM, to scan the code. In other instances, the scammers will try to get you to move money out of your bank before getting you to scan the code.
For example, a man from Athens, Georgia, was recently taken for $45,000 in a tech support scam. A computer pop-up told him his computer had been infected with a virus, and he needed to call Microsoft at a number listed on the pop-up. The scammers told him his computer and phone had been compromised, and he needed to move his money to a cryptocurrency account to protect it. After he moved his money, the scammers gave him a QR code to scan. Once the victim did that, his money was gone, having been transferred to the scammer.
In most consumer cases, cryptocurrency should be treated just like gift cards. The vast majority of businesses and agencies do not ask for payment in Bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency. While cryptocurrency is not untraceable, it is extremely difficult to get back once it’s been sent from one crypto wallet to another. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are still only used in niche circles, despite what its more vocal proponents will tell you.
So, if someone contacts you and asks for payment in Bitcoin, it’s more than likely a scam.
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