Page 14 - Mid Valley Times 11-7-19 E-edition

“Oh no, I have been scammed”, was what a 40 something year old employee of Sierra View Homes recently told me. She was so sure everything was honest and true until the end of the conversation. After she had given up im- portant information she realized something was not right. What an awful feeling. She hung up and quickly called her bank and
Now What?
the phone company to report what had hap- pened and to freeze everything. ankfully, she caught on to the scam and was able to avert disaster.
Many people are not so lucky. It seems to me that people try- ing to scam you out of your hard earned mon- ey are growing in num- bers. I recently read and article by Frank Abagnale who was a
RETIRED...
Thursday, November 7, 2019 | A14 | Mid Valley TiMes
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Oh no, I have been scammed!
By Ro Linscheid
scammer and now has made it his life’s work to ght scammers. In this article he shares details of three of the most recent types of scams.
Scammers are cunning and ruthless and have a plan that
is created to make you feel frightened and overwhelmed. If you get a call or an email from someone claim- ing they are from the IRS or some other nancial agency and you are told there is a lawsuit against you or something far worse, this is a scammer at work. ese people are aggressive and have a script that builds on your fears. ey may talk about a warrant out for your arrest, or because you owe back taxes you will be going to jail if you don’t pay the amount owed. e huge red ag in all of this is that the scam- mer tells you to go to a particular store, buy gift cards, scratch o the strip, and read the gift card numbers to the scammer. Why would the IRS want back taxes paid in
gift cards? It is seems absurd when you think about it, but when the
scammer has you so frightened with all the horrible things that could happen to you it throws reasoning out the window. Numer- ous people have gone and bought the gift cards and did as they were told. en they are told to go and get more cards. Soon the amount the scammer has collected is more than the amount they said you owed.
Here are some tips to help you should you get a call like this. First, the IRS does not notify people of tax issues by phone until it has sent written com- munications, usually multiple times. Sec- ond, the IRS and its collection agencies do not accept payments via gift cards. ey have no way to process this type of payment. ird, the government agencies do not make idle threats such as saying they will freeze your assets, revoke your driver’s license or change your immigra- tion status. Fourth, the IRS does not send out unsolicited emails or ask for detailed personal and nancial information via email.
Another long- running phone fraud is the grandparent scam. e caller is count-
ing on your emotions doing the thinking instead of your brain. In this scam the caller claims she/he is your grandchild and is
in trouble. She/he needs money to pay
for something like a medical treatment. It
is surprising how many intelligent people get pulled into this scam because they love their grandchild and would do anything for them. If you get a call like this, hang up and call your grandchild or his/ her parents to verify the need.
You have won a sweepstakes prize
is another way scam- mers can get you to turn over your money. If you get a phone call congratulating you on winning a contest you don’t remember enter- ing be on alert. You will be told you won some wonderful prize such as a car, a vaca- tion, or something else extravagant. But, there is a catch. You rst must pay taxes, fees or other expenses via a wire transfer or a pre- paid debit card. Most likely if you send in the money you will not see the money again
or the prize promised to you. You have heard
the phrase “if it sounds too good to be true
it probably is” should come to mind if you get a call like this.
Beware of Social Security spoo ng calls. If you get a call from someone claiming they are from the Social Security Administra- tion be aware this is
a scammer. is call could be very similar to the IRS scam call because the caller may threaten you with a warrant for your arrest if you don’t hand over personal information or threaten to suspend your Social Security Number. If you get a call like this hang up. Social Security does not contact people by phone and most of all they NEVER make threats about arrest or legal action.
More and more people are trying their hand at scamming.
You could get many calls in one day. is evening I heard of a PG&E scam where someone calls claim- ing to be from PG&E collections and you are delinquent on your bill. “Pay up immediately
or we will take action against you,” they say. PG&E does not make threatening phone
Scammed... continued on Next H&F Page
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