How to Identify and Avoid Impostor Fraud
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Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. Impostor scams generally start with an unsolicited , email, or . Fraudsters impersonate people and organizations you would ordinarily trust, or at least hear out. The most common pose, accounting for 40 percent of impostor reports to the FTC, involves government agencies such as , or the . But crooks might adopt any number of guises, including: Companies you do business with — for example, your bank or the local
or friendA lawyer or Whatever the pose, the message will be urgent: A bill is overdue. An . A cause needs your support. A loved one is in trouble. Some impostors pretend to be bearing good news — you’ve , say, or a . Resolving the problem or claiming the prize is a simple matter of making an immediate payment (preferably by or wire transfer) or providing personal data such as a Social Security or bank account number.
Most impostor scams are quick hits — the goal is to cajole or frighten you into making a rash decision, then disappear. But some crooks create entire fake personas on dating sites or social media and then invest weeks in
Impostor Scams
Impostor scams are exactly what they sound like — crooks pose as someone (or something) else to try to convince you to send them money. This is the most common form of fraud reported to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which logged nearly 985,000 complaints about impostor scams in 2021. Those cons collectively cost victims more than $2.3 billion, nearly double the 2020 total, according to FTC data.Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. Impostor scams generally start with an unsolicited , email, or . Fraudsters impersonate people and organizations you would ordinarily trust, or at least hear out. The most common pose, accounting for 40 percent of impostor reports to the FTC, involves government agencies such as , or the . But crooks might adopt any number of guises, including: Companies you do business with — for example, your bank or the local
or friendA lawyer or Whatever the pose, the message will be urgent: A bill is overdue. An . A cause needs your support. A loved one is in trouble. Some impostors pretend to be bearing good news — you’ve , say, or a . Resolving the problem or claiming the prize is a simple matter of making an immediate payment (preferably by or wire transfer) or providing personal data such as a Social Security or bank account number.
Most impostor scams are quick hits — the goal is to cajole or frighten you into making a rash decision, then disappear. But some crooks create entire fake personas on dating sites or social media and then invest weeks in