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FTC
Detects New Social Security Scam
Dear Elizabeth Gudde,
You look in your email inbox and
see the subject line “Get
Protected.” Well, we all want
that! Upon opening the email, you
learn that the Social Security
Administration (SSA) is supposedly
offering great new features to help
taxpayers protect their personal
information and identities. Sounds
so good that you may be tempted to
click on the link provided -- but
before you do, read this!
It’s a SCAM! The Federal Trade
Commission recently caught on to
this scam and is asking for help in
tracking down the fraudsters.
How It
Works:
- Scammers
pretending to be from the SSA
send out the email offering new
features to help consumers
monitor their credit and learn
whether someone is engaging in
unauthorized use of their Social
Security number.
-
It sounds very official and may
even mention the “SAFE Act of
2015.”
What You
Should Know:
- The
Social Security Administration
is not offering such a program.
It’s actually a “phishing”
email designed to get you
to click on the link. Doing
could cause “malware”
to be installed on your
computer, like viruses and
spyware.
-
The link might also take you to
a “spoof” site designed to look
like the SSA’s website and ask
you to provide personal
information, like your Social
Security number and bank or
credit account numbers.
What You
Should Do:
- If
you get a questionable email, DO
NOT click on any links. Instead,
report it to the Federal Trade
Commission by forwarding it to spam [at] uce.gov.
- Unsure
about whether it’s for real?
Here are a couple clues: “hover”
your cursor over the address
link in the email if it’s fake,
you’ll see that the address is
an unrelated .com address, not
the .gov address it appears to
be. And did it end up in your
junk folder? If so, that’s
because your email filters
recognized that it wasn’t for
real.
- If
you’re unsure if an email is
coming from the government, call
them yourself. But use an email
address you find yourself, not
the contact info listed in the
email.
Please share this alert with your
friends and family and urge them to
do the same! Together we can stop
scammers in their tracks and keep
your hard earned dollars in your
pocket where they belong!
Sincerely,
Kristin Keckeisen
Fraud Watch Network
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