It’s Scamming Time Again
Scamming time started early this year. First came the Friend Me scams on Facebook. Then came efforts by identity thieves to open accounts in two different banks. And then the electronic money transfer scam. It’s going to be a busy year.
Warmer Weather And Ukraine
As a former real estate broker, I keep an eye out; for real estate scams. Even though scams occur year-round, they pick up in the Spring.
Warmer weather is when people look for apartments and houses.
But this year, we have another catalyst for scammers to operate. The war in Ukraine may bring Russian hackers to our shores via the internet. Scams like bank scams and Facebook scams are likely to grow.
Consider this article your warning to be on your guard.
Scamming Time: The Facebook Friend Me Scam
I have been reluctant to friend anyone ever since some jerk sent me a friend request that was a scam.
It went like this, and oh, I bet this has happened to you.
I received a friend request from someone that was already in my group. This request was not the first one I had received from various friends, so I did not think much about it. I figured my friend had opened a new Facebook account. I had done that once before when it became necessary.
Not too long after confirming the request, I received a message asking if I had heard from a particular company. I found this to be strange and decided to research the company online. I did not click on the link sent to me. The search revealed a website to a defunct company.
A deeper search showed that the company was a particularly bad one.
Seeing all these discrepancies, I decided to check this new/old friend out.
Check Out The Friend Request First Steps
First, I went to the new Facebook page of this so-called friend.
Then I went to the old Facebook page I had bookmarked of my friend.
They both had the same photo, but the information was different. The phony page lacked important information that the real one had.
Important things, like my friend’s high school (we went to the same one), And there were no photos of his wife, someone he adores.
There were no photos of friends in common. And the work history did not exist.
This information was the opposite of what I found on the actual Facebook page for my friend.
I then decided to test this scammer with a test question. I asked him something only my friend would know.
That was the last time I heard from this jerk.
Note, I did try reaching out to my old buddy, but he does have a habit of not returning messages.
The Take Away
Not all scammers want to hijack your accounts. Some are immature jerks that think it is fun to mess with you.
Stopping The Jerk In Their Tracks
My advice, contact your friend through other means besides Facebook to confirm the request.
If that is not possible, send a test question to verify the identity of the person sending the friend request.
If the request is from someone you already friended, compare the Facebook page of the new request with the one you have been going to previously.
As I said, it is possible that your friend has created a new page and left the old one. And unless they deleted the old one, it is still active.
Facebook does not delete pages. I have friends that have passed, and their pages are still active on Facebook years after their death.
Update: 3.13.22
I received another “Friend Request” from someone that is already in my group of friends. Using the techniques I described here I determined that the request was fake.
Here’s exactly how to check while on Facebook.
- The friend request comes with a photo of the “Friend”, click on it.
- The photo has a link to the Facebook page that this friend is associated with.
- Check the information in this group, such as total friends, work experience, education, mutual friends, etc.
- Next, go to your page and search your friend’s list for the persn in question.
- Click on that image.
- You will be taken to that friend’s page. Compare the information. It should match.
In this case, as in the others, I looked into, the information did not match. I deleted that friend request.
Stripping
And if you are wondering about the photos and such. The process is called stripping. Here’s how it works.
Someone goes on your page, screenshots your photos, and uploads them to Facebook. They create a Facebook page claiming to be you.
As for names and contact information, the basic info is right there on your page.
To learn how prevalent and dangerous stripping can be, read my article here.
Stripping: Learn about what it is and what to do if you come across it.
Scamming Time: Bank Scams
The New Bank Account Scam
Wells Fargo
As if the Facebook scam was not enough of a headache. I got hit with the Wells Fargo scam. Although I call it that it could happen with any bank.
Here’s what happened.
Someone tried to get a loan in my name. They filled out an online application using the most basic of information. Nothing special, just the kind of info you can find by googling someone’s name.
Banks Are Woke
But banks have become better at processing these applications. The bank requested additional information that only I would have. So you can imagine my surprise when I received this request in the mail.
Yes, Wells Fargo sent me a form to fill out. Yes, snail mail, not email.
It seems that the scammer supplied my address for the application. Actually, they had no choice; a simple check by the bank would show my present address..
They could have used a phony address, but that would not have worked. Why? Because they still needed information only I have.
Contact The Bank
I don’t have an account with Wells Fargo, but I know how to find them online.
I contacted Wells Fargo directly and was connected to their fraud services division. It took no time to set up a fraud alert with them.
The consultant advised to contact the credit reporting companies and inform them of the attempted identity theft.
It is not necessary to contact each one individually. Setting up a fraud alert in one location sends fraud alerts to the others.
Free Accounts
In my case, I have a free account with Experian. I set up the fraud alert and soon received snail mail confirmation from the other credit reporting services. If you do not have a free account, check with the credit reporting companies to see if you can set one up.
You would think that this would be the end of it, but it was not.
The Apple Pay Scam
Citibank
Not too long after the Wells Fargo incident, someone tried to open an Apple Pay account in my mother’s name. And like the Wells Fargo attempt, my mom received a snail mail notification that she needed to complete the application process.
A call to Citibank ended this identity theft attempt.
First, the application was destroyed. And Citibank placed an alert on her account about the attempt.
Some Tips to Follow During The Scamming Time
- Do not click on links from unknown sources.
- Do not click on links that look like they came from your bank or other institution. Instead, go to the website and check things out there.
- Use the phone numbers on the website, not the email to make contact.
- Contact your bank if you suspect fraud. It cannot hurt to be safe, but it can hurt; if you ignore a warning sign.
- Do not answer unknown callers. If the call is from someone who wants to reach you, they will leave a message. If not, then ignore it.
- When answering a call, never say, “Yes”, when asked are you (your name). You could be agreeing to something you don’t know about. Instead, ask who is calling. If they insist on asking who you are; but refuse to explain the call, hang up.
These and other tips are available online from various sources. AARP puts out tips like these all the time. Learn them, use them.
Zelle Scam
As I was putting the finishing touches on this article I came across the following.
Banks say they’re not responsible for the fraud that happens on Zelle
It’s up to you to watch out for potential scammers. by Alex Gatewood From Know Techie
As a user of Zelle, I have a personal interest in this article. And I found, as with most scams, this is an old scam with a new twist. This time it’s digital.
Versions of this scam go back to when our parents were kids. Anyway, here is the meat of the article. I have supplied a link to the article should you want to read it. It’s a quick read and informative.
Excerpt
A new type of phishing scam has led to a large increase of fraud using the popular money transferring app, Zelle. Thieves are posing as bank employees and scaring customers into transferring funds. And the banks are saying that it’s not their problem.
In this new phishing scam, the scammer will disguise themselves as a bank employee and warn the customer of potential fraud. Then, the scammer requests the person transfer money seemingly back into their own account.
Except, the scammer will create a new account using the person’s credentials, and trick the person to transfer funds to the new account. It happens in seconds, and there’s nothing a person can do to stop it after the transfer has taken place.
Resources
Wells Fargo Fraud Page: How to Report Identity Theft
https://www.wellsfargo.com/privacy-security/fraud/report/identity-theft
Info on how to report identity theft as well as contact info to the credit reporting services.
https://www.aarp.org/search/?q=scams&c=everywhere
This link is to a webpage on various types of scams.
FREE Credit Reports. Federal law allows you to:
- Get a free copy of your credit report every 12 months from each credit reporting company.
Learn about real estate scams here.
http://www.scambusters.org/realestatescam.html
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