In today’s world, scams come in all shapes and sizes, and seemingly random events in daily life may actually be carefully crafted traps.
Recently, a message circulating within the North American Chinese community warns people to be cautious of a new variation of scam. According to a report by the local Canadian media, CTV News, an elder named Denise in Ontario suddenly received a package from Costco. Upon opening it, she found a brand-new Apple computer worth $4,900. Although she never purchased the computer and the recipient’s name was unfamiliar, the address on the package matched her own.
As Denise pondered over the situation, a man claiming to be an Uber driver arrived at her home, stating he had received an order to pick up a misdelivered package. Initially thinking it was just a random mix-up, Denise and her husband were fortunate to notice a pending transaction in their Costco account for the purchase of the computer. Sensibly, they refrained from handing over the package to the unfamiliar Uber driver, contacted Costco and the police. It was then they realized someone had used their Costco account and credit card information to place an order for the computer.
Package fraud cases have been abundant for years, with scammers previously having an easier time redirecting packages after credit card theft. However, as major companies and banks upgrade their network security systems, packages can now only be delivered to addresses matching the stolen credit card information.
Once the package reaches the victim’s address, thieves plan to brazenly show up to collect it. Denise fell prey to this elaborate “double-layer” scam. She hopes to caution everyone that if unfamiliar packages show up at their doorsteps, they should not hand them over to others but immediately contact the authorities and stay vigilant regarding their bank transactions and statements.
FBI agents state that many scammers resort to age-old tactics to defraud the elderly. Despite efforts to educate the public on avoiding falling victim to scams, a significant number of elderly individuals continue to be deceived each year, resulting in substantial financial losses. Scammers employ various methods such as mail, phone calls, door-to-door sales, and identity theft to carry out fraud against the elderly.
In 2022 alone, elderly individuals in the U.S. were defrauded of a staggering $3.1 billion.
To combat the intricate fraud crimes targeting the elderly, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI launched a program earlier this year, successfully recovering over $3 million in losses for elderly victims to date.
“Fighting those trying to deceive our most vulnerable citizens must be relentless,” says FBI San Diego Field Office Special Agent in Charge Jamie Arnold. “Our best defense is to educate the public on avoiding falling prey to these scams and encourage victims to report to law enforcement promptly.”
Cryptocurrency investment scams rank highest in terms of financial losses, as scammers primarily target victims through texts and chats. Victims often receive messages from strangers, sometimes with personal photos attached, initiating a simple “Hello”.
As the conversation progresses over time, it veers towards online investments. Building trust with the victim, scammers suggest making money through cryptocurrency investments. Subsequently, victims unknowingly transfer money to the scammers, who initially falsely claim considerable profits to later disappear with the funds.
Common scams include impersonating technical support, government officials, and bank employees, specifically targeting individuals over 60 years old.
Scammers employ multiple tactics, claiming the victim’s computer has been compromised or sending emails indicating purchases or subscriptions made by the victim.
Driven by the urgency to cancel the alleged purchases or subscriptions, victims often follow the instructions in the email to call a specified number to resolve the issue. The caller, disguised as a fake employee, may further instruct the victim to download remote desktop software to perpetrate fraud or coax the victim into purchasing gift cards, mailing large sums of cash, or transferring money through wire transfers. Once successful, scammers may repeatedly target the victim until they are left penniless.
Another prevalent scam is Business Email Compromise (BEC), where scammers impersonate real estate agents or escrow companies’ email addresses. They create email addresses strikingly similar to legitimate businesses, sending fraudulent emails to victims.
For instance, posing as a crucial escrow company involved in real estate transactions, scammers inform victims that wire transfer instructions have changed, persuading them to transfer money to a new account. Consequently, victims unknowingly transfer thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars to the scammer’s account.
The U.S. Department of Justice advises buyers, especially in real estate transactions, to verify high-value wire transfer instructions with the concerned parties to avoid financial losses.
Remember these points: legitimate companies do not request remote access to clients’ computers or phones; their customer service representatives do not ask for personal account usernames or passwords; they do not ask for cash, bullion, or precious metals to be mailed, or for clients to deposit funds at cryptocurrency ATMs.
If faced with such requests, ignore them; if receiving suspicious calls, hang up, then call family or friends for verification.