Scammers are still trying to take
advantage of the Covid-19 pandemic to steal your money or your identity. A
recent webinar hosted by the Social Security Administration and AARP demonstrated
the breadth of federal government services that can be affected by scammers. And
while the webinar was targeted to seniors, this was AARP after all, much of the
information applies to all walks of American life.
Here is a brief summary of the
affected federal agencies, what scams they observe, and where you can get more information
about scams from that agency.
Medicare- Medicare is often
a target of fraudsters, charging Medicare for products or services that are not
needed by patients or charging for products and services that are simply not
delivered to patients.
Scam Threats- Offers of
free testing, test kits and PPE. Sometimes the scammer will use a threat of
exposing the victim to the virus if they do not share their personal information.
Scammers contact potential victims via robocalls, web sites, social media or by
coming to your door. Scammers are often interested in your Medicare number.
Report fraud- You can
report fraud to
1-800-MEDICARE
Or
For more information-
U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, Office of Inspector General:
Social Security Administration
(SSA)-
Scam
Threats- Scammers will pose as a Social Security official. They may claim
that you won’t get paid your social security payment because the Social
Security office is closed. Or they may claim that you need to pay an extra fee
for extra coronavirus benefits. SSA warns that they will not arrest you for an
ID theft problem or require you to put money in a protected account. Nor does
SSA take payments in the form of gift cards, wire transfers, internet currency
or cash. And SSA won't tell to make up stories to your family or bank for gift
cards.
Report fraud- You can
report fraud to
Social Security Administration, Office
of the Inspector General- https://oig.ssa.gov/
For more information go to-
Social Security and Coronavirus Disease:
Census-
Scam Threats- Scammers may
impersonate a Census official claiming that you need to respond to the Census
in order to receive your Economic Impact Payment. They will ask for your full
Social Security number or a bank account numbers.
For more information go to-
United States Census Bureau:
Internal Revenue Service (IRS),
Economic Impact Payments (EIP)-
Scam Threats- The IRS says
that it won’t contact you for your personal information. It also will not offer
faster EIP payments for a fee. It warns not to click on links in suspicious
emails claiming to be from the IRS. To check on information about your EIP, go
directly to the IRS website. www.irs.gov.
Report fraud- You can
report fraud to
Treasury Inspector General for Tax
Administration (TIGTA)- https://www.treasury.gov/tigta/contact_report.shtml
United States Postal Inspection
Service (USPIS)-
Scam Threats- The USPIS sees
offers for fake cures and treatments being sent through the mail. Scammers will
also claim that you need to pay taxes or fees to receive your EIP payment. It also
sees imposter scams of people claiming to be from the World Health Organization
or the Centers for Disease Control demanding payment or personal information.
Report fraud- You can
report fraud to
For more information go to-
United States Postal Inspection
Service:
Department of Justice (DOJ)/Federal
Bureau of Investigation (FBI)-
Scam
Threats- The FBI says it is seeing an increase of impersonation scams
including grandparent scams, online romance scams and phishing scams. It is
also seeing COVID-19 scams including offers of vaccines, cures and treatments,
donation scams, and investment fraud.
Report fraud- You can
report fraud to
The National Elder Fraud Hotline-
1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311)
The FBI says to report internet
crimes, including coronavirus crimes, to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)
at https://www.ic3.gov/
Cybersecurity and
Infrastructure Agency (CISA)-
Scam Threats- CISA warns of
phishing attacks that try to download malware or ransomware onto your computer
or your business' network.
For more information go to-
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security
Agency:
Federal Trade Commission (FTC)-
Scam Threats- Treatment and
cures offered through email, text, and robocalls.
Report fraud- You can
report fraud to
FTC Complaint Assistant- https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/#crnt&panel1-1
For more information go to-
Federal Trade Commission:
Federal Communications
Commission (FCC)-
Scam Threats- Text scams,
robocalls.
Report fraud- You can report
fraud to
FCC Consumer complaint Center-
For more information go to-
FCC:
Consumer Financial Protection
Bureau (CFPB)-
Scam Threats- Strangers may
offer to help pick up groceries, medications, or other items, take you money,
then not show up with your supplies. CFPB recommends that you only use people
that you know or established delivery services or charities. You can also order
directly from stores that offer delivery services.
For more information go to-
Eldercare Locator:
CFPB:
AARP:
Fraud Watch Network-
Coronavirus-
Slam the Scam-
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