October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, which aims to raise awareness about the importance of cybersecurity and encourage individuals and organizations to take proactive steps to protect their online information.
A growing trend recently has seen scammers falsely representing themselves as FBI agents, or as representatives of another government agency. Oftentimes, scammers spoof caller ID information, in an attempt to make it appear as though the individual is receiving a call from a legitimate governmental agency. Many versions of the government impersonation scam exist, all of which exploit intimidation tactics. Scammers will typically use an urgent and aggressive tone, even urging the individual not to tell anyone else, including family, friends, or financial institutions, about what is happening.
One of our own clients received a phone call from two people who claimed to be FBI agents investigating fraudulent charges. The scammers claimed that the client’s personal information had been leaked, perpetrators opened credit cards in her name, and made fraudulent charges. The scammers then went on to say that the client needed to provide them with her personal banking information to setup an account to cover the fraudulent charges. Finally, they told the client that she would need to apply for a new Social Security number, and that she was to speak to nobody about this, or else she would be subject to fines and possible jail time.
The FBI (or any governmental agency, for that matter) will never do any of the following:
- Call or email private citizens to demand payment or threaten arrest. You will also not be asked to wire a “settlement” to avoid arrest.
- Ask you to use large sums of your own money to help catch a criminal.
- Ask you for wire transfers or gift cards.
- Call you about “frozen” Social Security numbers or to coordinate inheritances.
Scams impersonating the FBI and other government agencies can also occur via email. Common hallmarks of a scam email include misspellings, missing words, and incorrect grammar. Fraudulent emails may give the appearance of legitimacy by using pictures of the FBI Director and/or the FBI seal and letterhead.
If you suspect you may have been a victim of this, or if you are seeking to confirm the legitimacy of any recent communications, you are encouraged to file a report with your local law enforcement agency and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at www.ic3.gov.