What to Do If You’ve Been Scammed
When it comes to online scams, anyone can be a target. Ian Mitchell, a fraud specialist with 25 years of experience, recently had a close encounter with a scam when he was looking to buy a car. While browsing through an auto website, Mitchell realized that something was off. The seller was making excuses and refusing to let him see the vehicle in person. It became clear to Mitchell that he was on a fake website and he took immediate action. He reported the scam to the company and local law enforcement, aiming to prevent others from falling victim to the same fraud.
Unfortunately, many people are not so lucky. In the United States alone, consumers lost a staggering $10 billion to scams in 2023, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). This is a billion-dollar increase from the previous year. The most common scams are imposter scams, where someone pretends to be a friend or relative in need of money, a representative from your bank’s fraud department, or a technical support operative requiring access to your computer, as reported by the FTC.
Perpetrators of scams prey on people’s vulnerabilities. They exploit desires for love, greed, or necessity. Moreover, scams have become increasingly sophisticated, with scammers sending emails or texts that look legitimate and personalized. It’s important to stay vigilant and cautious.
Been Scammed? Here’s What to Do
If you suspect that you have sent money to a scammer, take immediate action, advises Kimberly Palmer, a personal finance expert at financial resources site NerdWallet. Start by changing your passwords if you have shared any of your login credentials or bank information. Contact your bank and inform them about the scam so that they can freeze your account and prevent further damage.
Next, report the scam to the FTC. You can do this through the ReportFraud.ftc.gov website. Additionally, it is crucial to report the incident to your local law enforcement agencies and your state attorney general if the money was sent within the United States. If you made a payment to someone overseas, it is recommended to report it to the FBI.
To protect your finances, Palmer suggests changing your bank account numbers. This may require some effort on your part to update your financial information, but it is worth safeguarding your money. However, if you have already sent money directly from your bank account to a scammer, recovering the funds can be extremely difficult, warns Eva Velasquez, president and CEO of the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC).
Although regulations like the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau’s Regulation E protect against unauthorized electronic fund transfers, if you authorized the payment to the scammer yourself, you may not be covered. Recovering money from scams requires a thorough investigation, and available resources are often limited.
How to Protect Yourself from Scams
When someone contacts you claiming to be from an organization and asks for personal information or money, be cautious and verify their identity, advises Velasquez. Scammers can easily spoof email addresses and phone numbers to make themselves appear legitimate. To be safe, contact the organization directly using trusted contact details. For example, call the number on the back of your bank card or log in to your online account to check for any messages.
Scammers may already possess personal information such as your name and address, making their claims seem more convincing. However, do not be fooled. Velasquez highlights that a significant amount of this information can be easily purchased on the dark web.
There are some basic steps you can take to protect yourself from scams. Palmer recommends using complex passwords for your accounts and enabling two-step authentication for both financial and social media accounts. Additionally, be careful when accessing online accounts while connected to public Wi-Fi to avoid the risk of having your information stolen.
When engaging in business transactions with unfamiliar companies, such as home builders or used car dealers, it is prudent to check if they are accredited by the Better Business Bureau. The organization also provides a Scam Tracker tool to help you stay informed about potential scams.
Lastly, it is crucial to have open conversations about scams with friends and family. There is no need to feel embarrassed if you have fallen victim to a scam. By sharing your experience, you can help raise awareness and prevent scammers from targeting others and potentially devastating their life savings.