Fake Phone Call Scams

1. You’ve probably heard of phone scams that can result in the loss of your money. Scammers that trick you into giving up this information are either friendly or terrifying. The bottom line is that you should be wary when on the phone with anyone, and avoid giving out personal information if possible. How to know if it’s a phone scam? Phone scams can make many different types of promises and threats, or ask for certain types of payments. Here are some ways to identify if someone is a phone scammer. Although the lottery might sound like a great opportunity, it’s actually a scam designed to make you think you’ve won something amazing for an incredibly low price, only to then ask for your credit card information or bank account details. Scammers might pretend to be law enforcement or a federal agency in order to intimidate you into paying for a debt. Real law enforcement and federal agencies will never call you themselves. Before agreeing to any contract, take your time and get written information about it. Legitimate businesses will give you time to make a decision. Don’t be pressured into making a decision on the spot.

2. Why use cash or a gift card when you can avoid the inconvenience and use your credit card? Scammers often ask for payment in a way that makes it difficult to get your money back. For example, they might ask you to wire money or pay with a pre-paid card. Trust people who ask you to use services like Cashora if you don't feel comfortable making any other kind of payment. Government agencies won’t call to confirm your sensitive information. It's never a good idea to give out sensitive information like a Social Security number to someone over the phone, even if they say they're from a government office. You need to avoid unnecessary phone calls. Companies are required to receive permission before marketing to you with robocalls. If a company harasses you with a live sales call, it’s most likely illegal.

3. Protect yourself from common phone scams. Phone scams are a big problem, and there are a number of ways that they can attack your personal information. What is an imposter scam? Scammers pretend to be trusted entities like the Social Security Administration or the IRS, close family members, love interests, and more. They can impersonate different people by using fake phone numbers or installing spoofing software, like Anydesk, on their phones. Scammers will promise to fix your credit and lower your interest rates if you pay a hefty fee. This can actually backfire and make your credit worse. When it comes to business, watch out for these scams.

4. Do not take it for granted when someone offers you help in starting your own business and guarantees high profits from an investment. Be aware of the FTC’s Business Opportunity Rule and check out any investment opportunity with your state securities regulator first. Top charity scams and how to spot them Fraudulent institutions pose as charities and ask you to give without doing any research. But, before donating to a disaster relief organization, always make sure they're legitimate and then avoid giving over the phone. Scammers will research what kind of car you drive and when you bought it, to convince you to buy overpriced or worthless used car programs. Discovering the truth about student loan scams Loan scams are illegal and many include advance fee loan scams. These scammers target people with a history of having bad credit and promise loans or credit only to charge them up-front fees instead. Legitimate lenders don’t take advantage of people this way, especially those with the same issues.

5. What are prize and lottery scams? A typical prize scam works by telling you that you have supposedly won a huge prize, but then asking for fees, and you will never receive the prize. Exposing the travel scams affecting you through hidden costs Scammers offer expensive vacations that have hidden costs. They may tell you they’ll sell your timeshare if you pay them first, but they are lying. These are the protection tips you can use to stop calls from scammers. When you get a robo call from an unknown number, don't press any numbers. This might lead to more robocalls. Some companies will ignore your request and continue calling.

6. How can you block annoying phone calls? Scammers use the internet to call users from all over the world. The National Do Not Call Registry is useless against these callers, so a good defense is to set up your phone to block incoming calls. Choose between call blocking or call labeling based on the technology of your phone. If you have a cell phone, look for reviews of apps in app stores or online. Learn why caller ID is not always correct. Fraudulent providers can make any number appear on caller ID screens. This is known as spoofing. So, even if it seems like the call is from a government agency, such as the Social Security Administration, or from a local number, it could be a scammer making international calls. What to do if you paid a scammer?

7. Scammers often scam unsuspecting people through different payment methods that make it difficult to get your money back. The sooner you contact the credit card company or a bank about your issue, the better. If you have paid a scammer with a credit card or debit card, you can contact your credit card company or bank to stop the charges. Tell them what happened and request a "chargeback" to reverse any charges made. Contact the company that issued the card right away and have them refund your money. The sooner you contact them, the better chance they have of getting your money back. If a bank has been unauthorized with your account, ask them to reverse the wire transfer. If you paid a scammer, use the app that payment was made through to contact them. If the app is linked to your credit card, contact your bank or credit card company first. Check your security software, update it if needed, and run a scan to remove anything the program identifies as being problematic. If you have given your credentials to a scammer, change your password immediately. In addition, if you use the same login for other accounts and

8. websites, change it there as well. Make sure that your new password is strong and difficult to guess. If someone has previously tried to take money from your bank account, visit IdentityTheft.gov to learn how to monitor credit reports and make sure that no one has hijacked your SSN. A fake refund scam is a situation where someone offers to help you get the money you lost back. Prevent scams with these tips. Supportly recommends reporting a phone scam through support@Supportly.app if you’ve lost money or have information about the company or scammer who called you. If you want to report a call from our database, you’re just going to fill out a simple form.