Rachel Cruze: Watch Out for These 8 Money Scams

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The Federal Trade Commission reported that fraud cost Americans $12.5 billion in 2024, with the median loss being $1,500 per victim. Many of those incidents involved imposters claiming to be someone trustworthy, like a bank, major store or the government, to scam people out of their money.

Financial expert Rachel Cruze discussed eight popular money scams in a YouTube video. Here are the schemes to watch out for this year so you don’t give up your money or personal information.

Fraudulent Bank Charge Texts

Cruze shared her experience responding to a text about a supposedly fraudulent Best Buy charge. A scammer called claiming to be Cruze’s bank, asked her to confirm information and responded angrily when she instead requested the caller’s name. 

The Federal Communications Commission suggested staying safe by not responding to such imposter messages or calls in the first place. Also, rather than calling numbers found in texts, find and call your bank’s real number if you suspect a problem.

Arrest Threat Calls

Another scary scam involves a phone call from someone claiming that you have to pay some money or else the police will come and arrest you. Cruze said the scammer will often claim you have an unpaid fine or you missed jury duty.

But the real police won’t call and threaten you this way. Cruze recommended contacting your local police station instead of handing over banking details out of fear of going to jail.

Amazon or USPS Texts

Cruze talked about a USPS text message scam that led to her providing her debit card details. The scammer claimed she needed to pay to reship a package due to an address verification problem. She received no package and later realized the website she was sent to was fake.

In an article, the United States Postal Inspection Service said it won’t send such texts with links to request payment details and encouraged reporting scam texts. The same is true for Amazon, who outlines this in its help center.

Fake Property Tax Bills

“If you just bought a house or maybe you refinanced, look out for very suspicious official-looking documents when it comes to taxes and insurance,” Cruze said.

These can include unexpected tax bills that look like they’re coming from your county and threaten you to make a quick payment. To avoid potentially losing money, take Cruze’s advice to ask your lender or broker if you receive something like this.

Fake Jury Duty Registration

While governments usually use lists of licensed drivers or registered voters to pick people for jury duty, scammers sometimes send emails with a link to a fake jury duty registration form. Cruze said this form asks for personal and financial details, which scammers can misuse.

Keep in mind that the government usually physically mails jury duty documents. Cruze also suggested always checking that the government website URL you’re visiting ends with “.gov.”

Familiar Area Code Spam Calls

If you’ve gotten random calls from phone numbers with your area code, telemarketers and scammers may be spoofing their numbers to tempt you to answer. 

Your phone might already identify these calls as potential scams. If not, it’s usually better not to answer these unknown numbers and instead wait to see if there’s a voicemail. 

Personal But Vague Texts

You might get a random text trying to get you to answer a question, such as if it’s a good time to talk or if something is wrong. Cruze’s advice is to ignore that text to protect yourself.

“If you don’t have that number saved that’s asking you all these vague questions, just don’t even answer it because there is a potential if you answer and reply, then they’re going to have some of your data and a pinpoint back to you,” she explained.

Package QR Codes

When you get a package, you might find a QR code that you feel tempted to scan. However, Cruze said this is unwise since you could be letting a scammer get your phone’s information.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs mentioned similar QR code scams involving parking meters and advised being cautious when scanning any codes and making payments with them. Going directly to the company’s website on your phone is another smart move.

Sources

• Federal Trade Commission, “New FTC Data Show a Big Jump in Reported Losses to Fraud to $12.5 Billion in 2024.”
• YouTube, “8 New Money Scams to Watch Out For.”

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