The Internal Revenue Service calls you, and states that you have a certain amount of money owed to them. The call is alarming, as the IRS is alerting you to quickly provide money “that is owed” or face jail time. Fearful, a caller complies, handing over Amazon gift cards. Though that request might sound alarms for most, many people continue drain their accounts of copious amounts of money to comply with scammers’ requests. Next thing you know, you are out thousands of dollars.
For most people, the answer to this puzzling request is a resounding no, but to Lieutenant James Pinto, and the Radnor Police Department, this scenario occurs more frequently than one would think.
“These cold call scams prey on the elderly, and those who are not fluent in English,” Pinto said, “The end result in these calls is often information such as Social Security numbers, Amazon account numbers, and bank routing numbers being extracted from people.”
Pinto painted a picture in which an elderly person, who just wants someone to talk too, gets roped into this dangerous scenario in which they owe an organization thousands of dollars. After hours of being suckered via telephone, the requested amount of money is never seen from again.
The frustrating thing about these phishing scams is that the money is virtually untraceable, as the perpetrators tend to operate from overseas accounts. This leaves Pinto, and police departments throughout the country with little they can do.
“Loneliness is the common denominator in the types of scams we see,” Pinto elaborated, “And it isn’t just elderly people who get jammed up in these cases.”
Pinto further discussed the phishing/extortion scams going on right now that college age kids are falling victim to. In most cases, it involves a young college age student who might be lonely, and is looking for a sexual partner. One thing leads to another, and next thing you know you and this normal looking person you met on one of the various dating apps are “sexting.”
The only problem? This person is fake, a “catfish”, a phony account, and now the victim in these cases is left scrambling to rectify the situation.
“I have seen numerous cases in which a person has been extorted for money due to nude photos they sent,” said Pinto. In almost all of these cases, the money is often paid because the victim is left with little to no choice.
These “catfish” type incidents also have been known to occur among older, and middle aged men. Pinto describes how divorced men have been known to meet younger women online, and develop these close personal relationships virtually. These men are often met with unusual requests for money, and will in some situations send the perpetrator thousands of dollars, and are then cut off.
When asked about how a person can prevent themselves from falling victim to these scams, Pinto’s answer was a mix of simplicity, but also thoroughness. “Be smart, and use common sense,” Pinto stated.
Pinto elaborated by describing that there is no scenario in which any federal agency will call a person asking for money to rectify a problem. “Money does not equal getting out of a jam,” said Pinto.
This also includes holding all personal information close to your chest, and not giving out any personal information. And if a call sounds a bit sketchy, Pinto says that you should ask for a callback number, as the scammers will not have one if the call is a fraud.
In terms of the “sexting” craze that college aged kids are falling victim to, Pinto ended with saying, “Just don’t do it, the risk is not worth any reward.”
