SCAM ALERT
SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION CALLING SCAM
DO NOT ANSWER
The Social Security Administration recently announced that the public is being scammed with threats to cancel individual’s social security numbers.
The victims are being told that they have “committed a fraud” and they are told to pay the SSA money and to do so with a prepaid or loadable debit card from a store.
One of the many things you need to know, the Social Security Administration (nor the IRS) will NEVER call you!
They do not usually have your phone number. And if so, your local office will call, and you should know who is calling.
When in doubt, which should be anytime you get a call from the “government”, ALWAYS call them through the phone numbers on the government website and contact your local or regional office from there.
Do NOT call them back at the number they give you. It can be spoofed and also redirected. If they are truly a government worker, they know to give you the main number and an extension for you to call back.
The primary key piece of information you need to know is that ALL scammers are doing is insisting or demanding that you get a prepaid or loadable debit or gift card to add money to and for you to give them that card data.
NEVER, NEVER, NEVER DO THIS!!
No matter how serious the threat sounds.
Once you give them the data on the card, they are untraceable and there is nothing you nor the investigators can do to find the criminals nor retrieve your funds.
IF you ever, ever, ever do fall for this scam, only add!
They will never know until it is too late for them.
And make sure you block their phone numbers and do not accept “BLOCKED” OR “PRIVATE” CALLS.
The information from the SSA can be found below here for what they have to share:
Scam artists go to great lengths to trick you out of your personal information or money. As the above video explains, by educating yourself and knowing how to identify and report scams, you can stay several steps ahead of these thieves.
3 TIPS TO PROTECT YOURSELF
Understand the threats. Fraudsters use several forms of impersonation, advance fees, and phishing schemes. They might contact you and claim to be from SSA, the IRS, or another government agency and request your information.
They might claim that you have won the lottery or become eligible for an investment if you pay an upfront fee.
They might design emails or text messages that look legitimate and request your immediate response. Be aware of these types of schemes, so you can identify them and guard against them.
Exercise caution. In general, no government agency or reputable company will call or email you unexpectedly and request your personal information, or request advance fees for services in the form of wire transfers or gift cards.
Build a habit of verifying the identity of anyone who asks for your personal information over the phone, and say you will respond through the entity’s customer service channels.
If anyone pressures you to provide information or money over the phone, it’s a scam and you should just hang up.
Secure your information. Store your Social Security card in a secure location; avoid carrying it with you. Shred documents that list personal information such as your Social Security number and banking information.
Avoid opening emails from unknown sources or clicking on suspicious hyperlinks. Equip your computing devices with strong anti-virus software and maintain strong passwords.
Regularly check your credit reports for suspicious activity.
Reference: https://oig.ssa.gov/newsroom/scam-awareness