The Robocalling Pandemic…….
48 billion Robocalls were made in 2019, up 57% from 2018 and there’s no reason to believe they wont continue to grow.
Whilst they may have been viewed as an inconvenience in the past, the sheer number of them and the capacity for Fraud is becoming clearer and more unsettling.
Fraud is being committed by rogue players with seemingly very real credentials. The FBI, IRS and the Social Security Administration are three of the main institutions that fraudsters have “used” to perpetrate fraud.
Quoting their badge numbers or official ID’s, calling from official looking phone numbers, creating fake office noises in the background, these have all become part of the sophisticated scenarios that fraudsters are using.
High pressure, very serious sounding calls with threats to suspend accounts, demanding immediate payment for outstanding liabilities (real or not!), threat of arrest…. the list goes on and it works!
An 81 year old woman robbed of $80,000 via a scam Social Security phone call. A 60 year old nurse parted with $340,000 to a fictitious FBI agent…the sums are huge and the stories heartbreaking.
We all need to be aware we can be victims and be vigilant against this type of fraud.
If you receive a call that you’re suspicious about:
Hang Up
Don’t engage in a conversation
Don’t give out any personal information
DO REPORT THE CALL
The following official websites provide additional useful information:
https://donotcall.gov
https://oig.ssa.gov
https://www.fbi.gov/tips