06/09/2021 | News release | Distributed by Public on 06/09/2021 22:59
Scammers often disguise themselves as people working for the government and might pretend to offer help. But, really, they're after your money or personal information. For Pride Month, the FTC wants the LGBTQ+ community to know about government imposter scams and how to avoid them.
Government imposters may call to 'verify your Social Security number,' or say your Social Security number or Medicare benefits have been 'suspended' due to a mix-up. Scammers may say your tax returns must be done differently because of a name change - and they need your Social Security number to fix it. For recently married people, or someone going through gender reassignment and a name change, the excuses scammers use might make sense. But wait right there. Scammers are just phishing for personal information they can use to steal your identity or take your money.
So how do you spot it and stop it? Here's what to know:
If you spot a government imposter, tell the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
It is your choice whether to submit a comment. If you do, you must create a user name, or we will not post your comment. The Federal Trade Commission Act authorizes this information collection for purposes of managing online comments. Comments and user names are part of the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) public records system, and user names also are part of the FTC's computer user records system. We may routinely use these records as described in the FTC's Privacy Act system notices. For more information on how the FTC handles information that we collect, please read our privacy policy.
This is a moderated blog; we review all comments before they are posted. We expect participants to treat each other and the bloggers with respect. We will not post comments that do not comply with our commenting policy. We may edit comments to remove links to commercial websites or personal information before posting them.
We won't post:
Comments submitted to this blog become part of the public domain. To protect your privacy and the privacy of others, please do not include personal information. Also, do not use this blog to report fraud; instead, file a complaint.