How Do You Identify An Impostor Scams?

If you are like other people, it can be the right time to say "enough" to receiving calls from scammers who pretend to be someone else.

Since the inception of social media and other online platforms, it has been easier to encounter impostors from around the world. They proclaimed to be the representatives of official organizations. These scammers play on their victims’ emotions to steal money from them.

No matter what grounds they are building on, they tend to ask for money from you. If it were not for the money that they are asking from you, they might try to snatch your personal information for their own gain. And here are some methods for identifying imposter scams and dealing with them.

Fake technicians

The idea of these impostors is to lure you into accepting their professional help. Maybe the con guys try to persuade you that your PC is having a problem, and they are ready to help you anytime. Or, perhaps, you have some serious problem in your system, and it will hinder your work if you leave it be. They might claim to be a brand representative of your laptop or PC and say that they are looking at your computer and there’s a dangerous malware that threatens your device.

Many people are using the Microsoft Windows OS over others. And believe us, claiming to be Microsoft Technical Support is the most sensible way to deceive you. You could put down the phone and report the imposter's phone number to the authorities. After all, no one has the right to look at your device, whether it is online or offline. And if there’s something wrong with your device, you will be the first person to know it.

Online dating scams

Some impostors pretend to be attractive matches. Thanks to the anonymity of the internet, they are able to set up fake dating profiles. In most cases, they will invite you to communicate outside of the online dating platform, where they can get your money orpersonal information. It might be tricky to identify phone scams from these sites. But when the money is involved, it is usually a red flag that you’d need to consider. Some of them also have excuses whenever you want to meet them. The easiest way to spot the scammers is to invite them on a video call. Scammers won’t dare show their true faces to you.

Family scams

Taking advantage of your relationship with your family, the impostors could pretend to be your family members. It can be your relatives or someone else. Typically, they pretend to be your unverified child or grandchild, requesting your money for an urgent matter. It is also one of the most frequent scams. Scammers can easily find information about your family from their social media.

Fake Authorities

Someone calls you and asks you to send money for a penalty or bail out. But they don’t know your name, address, or other important information. Well, that’s a scam for sure. They might say that your name is on their notice list and you need to verify your identity by sharing your social security number. One way or another, they’d ask you for money or your personal information. Well, no, not a chance. If you have a problem with the authorities, they won’t bother to ask about your personal information since they must already know. They have access to the SSN database and work with other entities. You can easily identify phone scams and report them to your regional authorities. There’s a chance that the scammer has their own networks.

Phishing sites

If you’re reading this article, we’re sure that internet browsing is one of your routine things. Of course, you will need to be safe and secure when using the internet for your work and other purposes. Online scammers have tons of ways to trap and get their victims with their schemes.

You might click on the scamming link somewhere in your email, share posts on Facebook, or other sites. Then there is a pop-up ad saying that "malware attacks your PC" or anything like that. The pop-up window might also advise you to contact the "technician" who can help you out. Or, perhaps, they ask you to pay them money so that you can remove the malware (a ransomware scheme). More often than not, although you’ve paid them an enormous amount of money, they won’t give back your files.

So, it is important to always back up your files. Do not store your passwords on your laptop, PC, or even the cloud. We’d suggest saving your credentials offline.

The IRS Guys

Some scammers really nail it when they pretend to be IRS representatives. But this modus operandi won’t work on folks who know how the IRS interacts with citizens. Internal Revenue Service agents might call you out of the blue and enforce that you pay the taxes, or there will be a huge problem with your records and return. But if you didn’t know about this, the IRS agents won’t be contacting you by phone or email. Instead, they will send an official letter to your address. So, when you receive a call that claims to be from an IRS representative, you may hang up.

Fake prizes

If you receive a call from top brand representatives or store staff that you’ve never heard of, they might be impostors. They claim that you are the winner of a prize. But to claim your prize, you will need to pay a "tiny amount" of a processing fee. But after transferring the money, they’re just "puffed". They are gone. And you will never receive the prize. If you need to send the money to collect your prize, it is better to hang up. They're just posing as your prize givers. You could identify spam calls and report them to the authorities if necessary.

Fake medic

False health-care representatives offer you medical benefits in order to obtain your personal information or fees. But it can also be the other way around. The scammers might be threatening your medical benefits to get your personal information.

There are tons of other schemes that are not listed above. But the examples above could give you an idea of how to identify impostor scams. Stay safe and aware.