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Every year, scammers come up with new ways to steal money from consumers. They also retool older scams and bring them back with a new twist.
We want to make sure you know what to expect so you won’t become a victim.
Even if you think you’d never fall for a scam, remember some of your loved ones may not be as savvy. Do your family a favor and make sure everyone knows the red flags to watch for.
Here are five scams to expect to see in 2019.
You know how it works.
You receive a call from an unknown number. You answer. There’s a second or two of silence, and then the pitch begins.
Sometimes it’s Rachel from credit card services to tell you about a great deal she can offer you.
Maybe it’s the FBI or IRS warning that you’ll be arrested immediately if you don’t pay your overdue tax bill.
Or it could be someone claiming that your grandchild is in the hospital, or arrested, or in some kind of trouble and needs money immediately.
Whatever the scam call – and there are many – you can expect to get more on your cell phone in 2019.
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Almost half of all cell phone calls in 2019 will come from scammers, according to First Orion, a call-blocking technology company.
The company said it expects spam calls to jump from 3.7 percent of all calls to 45 percent by 2019.
What can you do about it?
If you don’t recognize a number, don’t answer. Once you do, the caller will know yours is a “live” number – one that’s answered by a real person. And then, you can expect the calls to keep on coming.
Speak to your service provider about what call-blocking technology it offers, and learn how you can block individual phone numbers. Scammers frequently change numbers, of course, so it can be a job to keep up with them.
Also take a look at Nomorobo, a service that’s now offered for some cell phones.
Remember that if the call is a real call and you choose not to answer, the caller can always leave a voicemail and you can return the call.
The IRS said it’s expecting a surge in phishing scams – when fraudsters send emails and impersonate a government agency, trying to lure you to click on a link that may download malicious software onto your computer, or trick you into sharing personal information on a fake website. Or it might just demand cash because of your allegedly overdue tax bills.
The IRS said in 2018, it recorded a 60 percent increase in bogus email schemes that seek to steal money or tax data.
“These schemes can endanger a taxpayer’s financial and tax data, allowing identity thieves a chance to try stealing a tax refund,” the IRS said.
The IRS said one recent malware campaign used a variety of subject lines such as “IRS Important Notice” or “IRS Taxpayer Notice.”
Here’s what you need to know to protect yourself, straight from the IRS:
- Be vigilant; be skeptical. Never open a link or attachment from an unknown or suspicious source. Even if the email is from a known source, approach with caution. Cybercrooks are adept at mimicking trusted businesses, friends and family – including the IRS and others in the tax business. Thieves may have compromised a friend’s email address, or they may be spoofing the address with a slight change in text, such as name@example.com vs narne@example.com. In the latter, merely changing the “m” to an “r” and “n” can trick people.
- Remember, the IRS doesn’t initiate spontaneous contact with taxpayers by email to request personal or financial information. This includes asking for information via text messages and social media channels. The IRS does not call taxpayers with aggressive threats of lawsuits or arrests. Learn more about how the IRS will initiate contact with taxpayers.
- Phishing schemes thrive on people opening the message and clicking on hyperlinks. When in doubt, don’t use hyperlinks and go directly to the source’s main web page. Remember, no legitimate business or organization will ask for sensitive financial information via email.
- Use security software to protect against malware and viruses found in phishing emails. Some security software can help identify suspicious websites that are used by cybercriminals.
- Use strong passwords to protect online accounts. Each account should have a unique password. Use a password manager if necessary. Criminals count on people using the same password repeatedly, giving crooks access to multiple accounts if they steal a password – creating opportunities to build phishing schemes. Experts recommend the use of a passphrase, instead of a password, use a minimum of 10 digits, including letters, numbers and special characters. Longer is better.
- Use multi-factor authentication when offered. Some online financial institutions, email providers and social media sites offer multi-factor protection for customers. Two-factor authentication means that in addition to entering your username and password, you must enter a security code generally sent as a text to your mobile phone. Even if a thief manages to steal usernames and passwords, it’s unlikely the crook would also have a victim’s phone.
The IRS asks that you forward these fake emails to phishing@irs.gov.
New Jersey seniors should have received their new Medicare cards during the summer. The new cards no longer use Social Security numbers as identifiers, and that’s a good thing.
But scammers will still try to use confusion over the new cards to get your private information.
Some callers or emailers may say you owe a fee for your new Medicare card, and if you don’t pay, your benefits will be suspended. That’s not true. There is no fee for the Medicare cards.
You might get a call or email from someone saying there was a mistake with your new Medicare card number and you’ll need to give information, including your Social Security number, to authenticate the card or to authorize a new number. That’s also a scam.
Medicare said it will never call you uninvited and ask you to give personal information to get your new Medicare number and card.
“If someone asks you for your information, for money, or threatens to cancel your health benefits if you don’t share your personal information, hang up and call us at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227),” Medicare said.
It’s very rare that you’ll get a call from the real Medicare. See the limited circumstances under which you may receive a call.
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We saw versions of this scam last year, but we think we’re going to see it even more in 2019.
In this scam, fraudsters target human resources, payroll or benefits departments at companies, tricking employees to think an email is from a company executive.
The scammers ask for copies of W-2 forms of employees, and they always have a reasonable reason they need the information.
“These emails appear to be from an executive or organization leader to a payroll or human resources employee,” the IRS said. “It may start with a simple, ‘Hey, you in today?’ and, by the end of the exchange, all of an organization’s Forms W-2 for their employees may be in the hands of cybercriminals.”
If you receive a suspicious email, the IRS asks you forward it to phishing@irs.gov.
If you realize you’ve fallen for the scam, the IRS offers this to-do list.
- Email dataloss@irs.gov to notify the IRS of a W-2 data loss and provide contact information. In the subject line, type “W2 Data Loss” so that the email can be routed properly. Do not attach any employee personally identifiable information data.
- Email the Federation of Tax Administrators at StateAlert@taxadmin.org to get information on how to report victim information to the states.
- Businesses/payroll service providers should file a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). Businesses/payroll service providers may be asked to file a report with their local law enforcement agency.
- Notify employees so they may take steps to protect themselves from identity theft. The Federal Trade Commission’s www.identitytheft.gov provides guidance on general steps employees should take.
- Forward the scam email to phishing@irs.gov.
Read more about these kinds of scams on the IRS website.
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There’s been an uptick in what’s being called “sextortion” scams.
“The threat usually consists of a cyber-criminal telling a user he’s been hacked or infected with malware, and the crook has managed to obtain evidence of the victim performing sexual acts or having illegal sexual-related files on his computer,” according to a published report by ZDNet, a business technology website.
There are several versions of the scam.
Some threaten to expose the victim to friends, family or authorities if a ransom demand is not paid in cryptocurrency in a given time, ZDNet said.
The newest version claims to have recorded an embarrassing video on the victim’s webcam, and the victim can see for himself by clicking a link in the email. But rather than a video, the link downloads ransomware or other malware onto the victim’s computer.
How to protect yourself? Don’t click on any links you receive in an email, and report it to the Internet Complaint Center (I3C).
Learn more here from the FBI.
