Tell me about common cons/scams: "Thanks, you suck. Hello, this is Linda."

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Tell me about common cons/scams: "Thanks, you suck. Hello, this is Linda."

Elissimpark: May 20, 2010; Bring me the head of Auguste Escoffier.

SonOfGhostDad posted:

But to get back on the topic of scams, I've been seeing a lot of business impersonation fraud lately. The scammers will steal and sometimes slightly alter a bank or fintech's logo and formatting, then text or email people who may be on legitimate lead lists.

The scammers will pose as an officer of the bank or fintech and attempt to get the victim to give up their vital info, SSN, bank account info (including login info), as well as email address for complete account takeover. Then comes the gift card demands.

Sometimes they'll even set up dummy websites with fake bank verification prompts, which is especially confusing for people who aren't familiar with programs like Plaid or DecisionLogic, etc.

The Australian Taxation Office (and presumably the equivalent government department in other countries) get a lot of these. They keep a list of reported scams on their website - there are a lot.

When I worked in an ATO call centre ten+ years ago, they had to explicitly state that the ATO will never ask for gift cards to repay tax debts.