Unwanted phone calls are not only a nuisance, they can also be dangerous — and they can be avoided.
While scammers are resorting to more devious tricks, phone scams continue to pose risks to the unwary. Almost 60 million Americans reported being scammed in 2021, losing an average of $502 each for a total of $29 billion.
Fraudulent schemers not only seek money, but want access to victims’ information.
Scammers can be friendly or threatening, but are always out to cause harm.
Mikhail Nilov/Pexels
10 common phone scams to be aware of:
1. Scammers sometimes offer free gifts as rewards to consumers that actually are efforts to take your money and information. Vacations and travel are among the most common offerings by scammers seeking your address, credit card number, credit information, while asking for a shipping and handling fee or similar fee to send the gift.
2. ‘You’ve won the lottery’ scams often come from outside the United States, thus making law enforcement’s job all the harder. Scammers ask their victims to pay a fee, buy tickets, and/or provide personal information. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) estimates that Americans lose up to $120 million to the schemes.
3. ‘I’m calling from the IRS’ scams are particularly common before April 15, when Americans file their income tax statements or near the end of the fiscal year. Typically, scammers claim that the victim owes…
