Telephone Tuesday: How to Tell That Its a Scam Call

Imagine getting a phone call claiming that you’re going to win money if you just hand over your personal and financial information. Would you hang up or stay on the line to receive this money? If you answered that you would hang up, then that is the right move. Scammers will do anything to get their hands on your information so that they can steal your money and commit identity theft. Curious as to what other types of scam calls there are? Keep scrolling to continue reading how to tell that it’s a scam call during Telephone Tuesday.

How to Tell That it’s a Scam Call: Scams to Watch Out For on Telephone Tuesday!

Lottery Scams

Scammers will claim that you won a prize over the phone and need your information in order to receive it. They ask for your name, address, phone number… then try to get your social security number, card information, and sometimes even bank account information. You might be wondering why, since it’s supposed to be a free prize that you don’t have to pay for. The scammer comes up with excuses, claiming that they need to verify your information and that you need to pay a small shipping fee.

If a scammer ever tries to tell you any of these excuses, don’t listen to them! They are only saying these things to get their hands on your money and will not send you the promised prize. They are lying when they say you have won a prize so that they can try and trick you out of your hard-earned money. Once you tell them your information, they will use it to steal your money instead of sending you a prize, so make sure to keep this information to yourself.

Investment/Business Scams

Scammers promise to do business with you if you invest in their business opportunity. They claim that you will make three times more than you do now risk-free if you give them a certain amount of money. Usually, investment opportunities have some risks involved since there is no guarantee that you’ll gain money from them. However, scammers claim these opportunities are risk-free so that they can convince you to participate.

They ask for your personal and financial information so that they can supposedly invest your money into this business. However, they only want this information so that they can steal you out of money. There is no investment opportunity, scammers lie about this so that they have a reason to get their hands on your money. Then, once they have your money they block you and never give you the promised amount of money back.

Social Security/IRS Scams

Scammers call you and pretend to be the IRS, claiming that your identity is in trouble. They claim that you broke the law with your identity and ask that you pay a fee before they arrest you. They also ask for all of your personal information, including your social security number, claiming that they need it to verify who you are. However, they are just coming up with all of these excuses to scam you out of money and are not actually the IRS.

If you deny giving them this information, they will threaten to arrest you and put you in jail, but these are all just empty threats. They only say this to scare you out of your hard-earned money, making you feel that if you don’t give them the money now that you’ll be arrested. However, the best thing to do if you get these calls is to hang up and block the number. A police officer will not show up at your door since they have nothing to arrest you for.

Sales Scams

Scammers call you claiming that they have something they want to sell to you. They claim that this item is at an extremely low price, making the deal seem irresistible. This makes the person want the item more, so they agree to purchase it over the phone. The scammer then asks them to hand over their personal and financial information to purchase the item and ship it to their house. This personal information includes their name, email address, address, and social security number to “verify their identity” even though this is a lie.

They also ask for gift cards, wire transfers, cryptocurrency, and/or bank account information in order to purchase the item. Scammers ask for these types of payments since it is untraceable and nearly impossible for victims to get their money back. Once scammers get their hands on victims’ personal and financial information, they stop talking to their victims and they never receive their item.

Imposter Scams

Scammers pretend to be their victim’s loved ones as they desperately ask their victims for help. They claim that they are in trouble and need the victim’s help to save them. Since the victim thinks that the scammer is a loved one, they become fearful and are willing to help them in any way they can.

The scammer claims that they need money in order to get out of a troubling situation. The victim gives the scammer money thinking that they are helping, and the scammer claims that they need more to get help. The victim becomes bankrupt and learns that it was all a scam.

How to Avoid Scam Calls on Telephone Tuesday

• Don’t give out any of your personal or financial information to anyone you don’t know over the phone for any reason.
• Wait to purchase things online on verified secure websites, watch out for fake websites!
• Don’t pay with a wire transfer or gift card over the phone.
• Register your phone number with the Do Not Call registry, and if you receive a telemarketing call after this you know it’s a scam.
• Don’t believe that you won a prize you didn’t actually register for.
• Don’t believe in Caller ID if the phone call sounds suspicious or asks you for money/your personal information.
• Research the company that is calling you to see if the offer is legit.
• Don’t rush your decision if the caller is trying to rush you, this means they are most likely a scammer.
• Report any phone scam you’ve been a part of to the FTC if you lost money
• Report any suspicious phone calls to donotcall.org
• Report any Caller ID spoofing to the FCC.

Social Catfish is Here to Help You on Telephone Tuesday!

At Social Catfish, we want to help you verify the identities of those who might seem suspicious to you. If you have their name, email address, phone number, social media username, or image, you can reverse search and see who the suspected person was that you’ve been in contact with when figuring out how to tell that it’s a scam call on Telephone Tuesday.