SCAM UPDATE– Imposter Scams, Millennials

Government Imposter Scams. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says that government imposter scams are the number one scam reported to it through its complaint web site. Scammers impersonate government officials, such as IRS agents, Social Security Administration employees, or even Sheriff’s Office deputies as reported recently by the King County Sheriff’s Office, to scare you into giving them money to get out of trouble such as a supposed imminent arrest.

The FTC says that only 6% of those reporting government imposter scams say they lost money. But the median loss was $960. People 80 or over reported a median loss of $2,700.

The top three government imposter scams reported from January to May of this year were Social Security, Health and Human Services/Medicare and IRS.

The FTC recommends that you:

·         Be suspicious of any call from a government agency asking for money or information.

·         Don’t trust caller ID- it can be faked.

·         Never pay with a gift card or wire transfer.

·         Check with the real agency.

Also, report scams to the FTC at www.ftc.gov/complaint.



Federal Trade Commission:

https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/blogs/data-spotlight/2019/07/government-imposter-scams-top-list-reported-frauds#end1



KING TV:

 https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/scammers-pose-as-law-enforcement-threaten-arrest-to-collect-money/281-6a7fce62-8f9c-4b30-9e58-bb489b94512a

  





Millennials Susceptible to Fraud. In a study of reported fraud complaints, the Federal Trade Commission has found that millennials (20-39 years of age) are 25% more likely than people 40+ to report losing money to fraud.

The top three scams that they report losing money to are online shopping, business imposter scams and government imposter scams.

The median reported loss by millennials is $400, much lower that what people 40+ report. However, over the past two years, millennials reported losing a total of $450 million. They lost $71 million to online shopping fraud and $61 million to government imposter scams.

While scammers are most likely to contact millennials by phone, like other age groups, they are less likely to report losing money to a phone scam. Millennials are 77% more likely to lose money responding to a scam email than their older counterparts.

We all assume that elderly people are especially susceptible to fraud. However, the FTC findings show that anyone, of any age, can be victimized by fraudsters.



Federal Trade Commission:

https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2019/10/millennials-more-likely-report-losing-money-fraud-older



https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/blogs/data-spotlight/2019/10/not-what-you-think-millennials-fraud