Financial fraud and scams are all too common and they are getting more sophisticated as criminals sharpen their knowledge and skills.
While just about anyone can fall victim to fraud, there are safeguards that can prevent you from being scammed. Being knowledgeable, vigilant and reporting an incident of fraud quickly, are just some of the ways to keep your identity and money safe, according to two representatives from Greenfield Savings Bank.
Linda Ackerman, Assistant Vice President and Community Engagement Officer, and Adam Rosenbaum, Greenfield Branch Manager, talked to seniors in Christa Snyder’s Career and College Awareness class on Monday.
“Fraud in the United States is a trillion-dollar industry,” Rosenbaum said. “Anyone can fall victim to a scam. These are professionals that commit fraud for a living.”
Ackerman and Rosenbaum outlined the different types of scams that are common these days, including imposter scams, pig butchering scams, check-washing and fraudulent emails, texts or phone calls.
An imposter scam is when someone pretends to be another person and asks for money or personal information. Some imposter scams include a communication from someone pretending to be from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, family members or friends, electric or other utility companies, law enforcement agencies, tech support companies and charities.
Fraudsters who engage in pig butchering scams take more of a long view, as they work to build trust in their potential victims before they strike, often with fake investment opportunities. Typically the investment opportunity will be in the form of crypto currency.
“Crypto has no federal protections,” Rosenbaum said. “It’s very high risk and fraudsters love it.”
The scammer often initiates a romantic relationship through a dating app like Tinder. The relationship is strictly online and a level of trust is established though online chats. After investing for months, the victim of a pig butchering scam is told they need to pay taxes on the returns. When a victim attempts to withdraw the money, they’re told they have to pay additional fees to do so, or they may be locked out of an account. Once the additional money is paid, the scammer disappears.
Check washing scams are simply erasing details from checks that allow them to be changed or rewritten. It’s the second most common scam among consumers and small businesses.
Scammers use emails, texts or phone calls from a bank or other company or institution to trick people into giving away account or personal information.
Snyder said the idea to have Ackerman and Rosenbaum talk to her class about fraud and scams came from a student last year who suggested the topic. She thought it was a great idea to make the students aware of the types of scams are out there and how to guard themselves from it happening to them.
“This is a very important,” Snyder said. “These kids were raised on technology, but they’re young and could be susceptible to scams and fraud. The idea was to make them aware that these things exist and it can happen to anyone.”