German American’s Post

If you have been a victim of a scam, you may be tempted by offers of help to recover your money. However, you should be aware that there are also scammers who prey on people who have already been scammed, promising them a refund or compensation for a fee. These scammers may contact you by phone, email, or social media, claiming to be from a government agency, a law firm, or a consumer group. They may use official-looking logos or documents to appear legitimate. They may also ask for your personal or financial information, such as your bank account details, passwords, or copies of your ID. These are all signs of a money recovery scam. The scammers are not trying to help you, but to steal more money from you or to use your identity for fraud. If you pay them any money, you will not get it back and if you give them any information, you may put yourself at risk of identity theft. To protect yourself from money recovery scams, you should: - Never pay any money to anyone who claims to help you recover your money from a scam. - Never give any personal or financial information to anyone who contacts you unexpectedly and asks for it. - Hang up the phone, delete the email, or block the social media account of anyone who makes such offers. - Report the scam to the authorities and to the platform where you encountered it. - Seek professional advice from a reputable source if you need help with your finances or legal matters. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Don't let scammers take advantage of your situation and make it worse. Be vigilant and cautious when dealing with unsolicited offers of help. #scamalert #recovery #finance #news #fraud #cybersafety

DON’T BE A VICTIM OF FRAUD The Somerset County Sheriff’s Office has received a significant increase in the number of attempts to commit fraud in recent days. Fraudsters try many tactics to pressure victims into providing personal information or paying a fee. They often convince victims to withdraw money from the bank to avoid being arrested. Common scams are: • Email or phone call advising that your accounts have been hacked. • Email or pop-up from Microsoft advising you that your computer has been hacked. • Email or pop-up from the Geek squad claiming you owe money or have been hacked. • Facebook message that you have been hacked. • Caller from a Bank or other business claiming to update their records by asking for personal data. • Caller claiming to be law enforcement, stating there is a warrant for your arrest. • Caller claiming your grandchild was in an accident and needs bail money. Any caller telling you to buy gift cards or submit money to a bitcoin or cash machine for payment is not legitimate. Some scammers will tell you they need to get access to your computer to fix the problem. This is a ploy, and you should never allow anyone access to your computer. If you receive a call or email that you believe to be suspicious from our agency please call the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office at 908-231-7140. If you have been scammed, report the incident to local law enforcement immediately. The Somerset County Sheriff’s Office works diligently to prevent these types of crimes and keep you safe!

DON’T BE A VICTIM OF FRAUD The Somerset County Sheriff’s Office has received a significant increase in the number of attempts to commit fraud in recent days. Fraudsters try many tactics to pressure victims into providing personal information or paying a fee. They often convince victims to withdraw money from the bank to avoid being arrested. Common scams are: • Email or phone call advising that your accounts have been hacked. • Email or pop-up from Microsoft advising you that your computer has been hacked. • Email or pop-up from the Geek squad claiming you owe money or have been hacked. • Facebook message that you have been hacked. • Caller from a Bank or other business claiming to update their records by asking for personal data. • Caller claiming to be law enforcement, stating there is a warrant for your arrest. • Caller claiming your grandchild was in an accident and needs bail money. Any caller telling you to buy gift cards or submit money to a bitcoin or cash machine for payment is not legitimate. Some scammers will tell you they need to get access to your computer to fix the problem. This is a ploy, and you should never allow anyone access to your computer. If you receive a call or email that you believe to be suspicious from our agency please call the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office at 908-231-7140. If you have been scammed, report the incident to local law enforcement immediately. The Somerset County Sheriff’s Office works diligently to prevent these types of crimes and keep you safe!

$50K gone!! Just like that. Anyone can be a victim of fraud, even a financial-advice columnist. I will give this caveat, being a financially savvy person does not mean you fully understand fraud. This victim, fell for an imposter scam, which is now the #1 fraud scam according to the Federal Trade Commission. In 2023, $10 billion was lost to scams according to the FTC, with $2.6 billion from imposter scams alone. It is important to stay up-to-date on fraud prevention and education. Here's a quick quote from the victim: "Being the victim of a scam can be devastating," she wrote in a thread. "A reminder that nobody from @FTC will ever give you a badge number, ask you to confirm your Social Security number, ask how much money you have in your bank account, transfer you to a CIA agent, or send you texts out of the blue." Stay safe and be vigilant! #fraud #fraudprevention #fraudhero #imposterscams #scams #ftc #federaltradecommission https://lnkd.in/eGupjNPW

🚨Here's a very common scam: Scammer wants you to think that they accidentally transferred money to you and will ask you to return the money, and they'll scam you because they didn't actually do a transfer in the first place. How do they make you believe that they transferred the money then? Whenever you receive money, you get an account credit SMS alert right, they'll send you the same message, but from their own number. Now some of you know that the account credit SMS alert can be sent only by the bank from an alphabetic shortcode sender-id. But many people don't know that and that's what these scammers take advantage of. We at Truecaller warn our users with a fraud warning notification whenever they receive an account credit SMS alert from a 10 digit sender that's not the standard bank sender-id. We're already seeing lakhs of users seeing these warnings every day, this shows the extend to which this scam is happening! We're doing our best to protect our users from various types of scams.

£6.7million lost to ticket fraud in 2023! New data released today by Action Fraud reveals £6.7 million was lost to ticket fraud last year. https://lnkd.in/e5GYhmKf Action Fraud, the national fraud and cybercrime reporting service, has launched a ticket fraud awareness campaign, warning people to be alert to fraudsters trying to catch out people planning for popular and sold-out events. Last year more than 8,700 people reported they had been a victim ticket fraud, with a total of £6.7 million lost. This works out to an average loss of £772 per victim. How to protect yourself from ticket fraud: Only buy tickets from the venue’s box office, the promoter, an official agent or a well-known and reputable ticket exchange site. Avoid paying for tickets by bank transfer, especially if buying from someone unknown. Credit card or payment services such as PayPal give you a better chance of recovering the money if you become a victim of fraud. The password you use for your email account, as well as any other accounts you use to purchase tickets, should be different from all your other passwords. Use three random words to create a strong and memorable password, and enable 2-step verification (2SV). Be wary of unsolicited emails, texts or adverts offering unbelievably good deals on tickets. Is the vendor a member of Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers (STAR)? If they are, the company has signed up to their strict governing standards. STAR also offers an approved Alternative Dispute Resolution service to help customers with outstanding complaints. For more information visit star.org.uk/buy_safe. Report ticket fraud If you feel at all suspicious, report the email to the Suspicious Email Reporting Service (SERS) at [email protected]. For more advice on how to stay secure online, please visit cyberaware.gov.uk. Find out how to protect yourself from fraud: https://lnkd.in/eHJf7ZNj If you live in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and have been a victim of fraud or cybercrime, report it at www.actionfraud.police.uk or by calling 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, victims of fraud and cybercrime should report to Police Scotland on 101.

With spring break upon us, Class Act is seeing a surge in scams, & we’re here to help! One such con is the “Grandparent Scam.” In a typical Grandparent Scam, fraudsters exploit the trust & love between grandparents & their grandchildren. They often pose as a grandchild or other family member in distress, claiming to be stranded in a foreign location or facing legal troubles. In some scenarios, the fraudster will pose as a third party attempting to help their grandchild get out of a sticky situation. The scammer then urgently requests money to resolve the supposed emergency, often insisting that the situation be kept secret. Red flags to watch for include: -Urgency of Request: Scammers often create a sense of urgency to pressure victims into acting hastily. -Secrecy: The individual requests that information about the wire transfer be kept confidential. -Unknown Requestor: If you receive a phone call or email prompting you to send money. -Bitcoin: If you are asked to purchase Bitcoin to send to the individual you can guarantee it is -fraud. -Gift Cards: If you are asked to purchase gift cards to send to the individual you can guarantee it is fraud. Tips to protect yourself include: -Verify Identity: Before sending the wire transfer, ensure you have independently confirmed the identity of the person contacting you or reach out to another family member to corroborate the situation. -Don’t Rush: Fraudsters thrive on creating panic and urgency. Take your time to assess the situation carefully. If you suspect fraud or encounter a suspicious wire transfer request, don’t hesitate to contact us at 502.964.7575 or [email protected] for immediate assistance.

A recent survey in the UK has revealed concerning details about the tactics employed by scammers. Scammers are taking advantage of busy periods each week, with midweek emerging as a popular time for scammers to be successful, and close to half of successful scam attempts happening in the afternoon. These findings reiterate the critical need for financial institutions to ensure that customer communication, particularly scam notifications, reaches their customers promptly, where timely and efficient alerts could mean the difference between security and considerable fraud losses. Find out more from the survey: #scamprevention #fraudprotection #UK

What is a Recovery Scam? Learn how to identify and avoid future scams effectively with our comprehensive guide! 🚫 Scammers are always on the lookout for vulnerable individuals who have already been scammed. They pose as helpful entities, promising to recover your lost money or prizes. But beware! Their real intention is to deceive you into paying upfront fees or giving away sensitive personal information. 🔍 In this comprehensive guide, we'll explore the different types of recovery scams, the tactics scammers use, and most importantly, how you can protect yourself from falling victim to these fraudulent schemes. 🔒 By understanding the warning signs and taking proactive measures, you can safeguard your hard-earned money and personal information from these unscrupulous individuals. 💡 Here are some key tips to protect yourself: ✔ 𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟:  Stay informed about the latest scams and fraud tactics through reputable sources like government agencies and financial institutions. Awareness is your best defense. ✔ 𝐁𝐞 𝐒𝐤𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥:: Don't trust unsolicited contacts offering recovery services. Verify their legitimacy before sharing any personal information or making payments. ✔ 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Thoroughly research any recovery service provider before engaging with them. Look for contact details, a physical address, and a reputable online presence. ✔ 𝐍𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐏𝐚𝐲 𝐔𝐩𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐭 𝐅𝐞𝐞𝐬: Legitimate recovery service providers don't ask for payment upfront. Refrain from making any payments before services are rendered. ✔ 𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐟𝐲 𝐆𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐀𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐬: Independently verify the identity of individuals claiming to be from government agencies.  ✔ 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Avoid sharing sensitive personal and financial information with unknown entities.  ✔ 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐏𝐚𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝𝐬: Always use secure payment methods and avoid untraceable transactions.  ✔ 𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐒𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐬: If you encounter a recovery scam, report it to the authorities. #recoveryscam #financialfraud https://lnkd.in/eEnu4fV3

The reason for this post is I want to share an experience that my husband and I have recently gone through in the hopes that it might help someone else. We have recently gone through a significant credit card fraud. It has taken over 45 days with one of the major big four banks to get it sorted. I can’t tell you the stress that it’s put on both my husband and I during this time. Our Bank of 45 years failed to pick up these multiple, sizable and overseas transactions and we only found them when our card was declined. Whilst it finally got sorted today I just want to encourage everyone to go to their bank or financial institution and make sure that you have all the protections possible in place. The day we rang to report this fraud is the day we found out certain protections that could have been on our credit card account that we weren’t even aware of. To say that on top of the obvious stress, I also felt stupid and uninformed at this point is an understatement. These protections weren’t even possible when we set this account up a number of years ago and were told that unless we went into the bank and asked we wouldn’t have been told about them. Please go into your bank and make sure that you have everything in place that you possibly can to try and prevent the level of stress that we have been through in the last 45 days. On top of this we were shown very little empathy from our Bank, we were met with annoyance when we tried to get information on the investigations progress and the communication was dreadful! Not good enough! We were very fortunate to have some assistance from two people who had insider knowledge of how the fraud investigation process takes place and this managed to keep me slightly sane, although that’s debatable! Thank you to you both! 🙏 What I have learnt about fraud, cyber risk and scammers since this has happened absolutely terrifies me! So many are getting scammed and we don’t even know! Lesson learnt to keep educating myself on the constantly changing faces of these issues!