ARLINGTON, Va.–The Better Business Bureau has released a list of the Top 10 scams of 2015, nearly all of which involve either directly stealing money or getting access to a victim’s financial information.
The release of the Top 10 list comes at the same time the BBB has released research showing it is Millennials, not seniors, who are most likely to be scammed.
The BBB’s findings are based on data pulled from its “Scam Tracker,” a crowdsourcing tool where more than 30,000 consumers have reported scam details to BBB. With Scam Tracker, 89% of those age 65 and older said they recognized the scam in time; just 11% reported losing money. But more than three times as many of those ages 18 to 24 failed to recognize the scam in advance; 34% said they lost money.
According to the BBB, the Top 10 Scams of 2015 were:
1. Tax scam: Someone calls claiming to be from the Internal Revenue Service and says back taxes are owed and the targeted person will be arrested or face legal consequences if payment isn’t made.
2. Tech support scam: The targeted person is contacted by a “technician” saying their computer has a virus or a security threat. But — good news! — the tech can fix the problem for a fee. In reality, the caller is likely a hacker trying to steal the victim’s money or computer passwords or even trying to damage the computer with malware.
3. Lottery/sweepstakes/prizes scam: A person is contacted and told they have won a lottery prize, but they must first send money for delivery, processing or insurance costs.
4. Advance fee loan scam: The targeted person completes a loan application online and is then told they need to send a processing fee, security deposit or insurance to get the money.
5. Fake check scam: Someone pays the targeted person for something and sends a check for more than what was owed. The potential victim is told to deposit it and wire the difference. The check is a fake.
6. Debt collection scam: The target gets a call saying they haven’t paid a debt and will face garnishment, a lawsuit and maybe jail if they don’t pay up pronto. Very often the scammer pretends to be with the government or law enforcement.
7. Credit card scam: The targeted person is told by their purported credit card issuer that they have become eligible for a new lower rate, and all that’s needed is to verify a recent transaction by providing a credit card number and security code.
8. Home improvement scam: A bogus “contractor” offers to fix what’s wrong, as long as the targeted person pays a substantial amount of money upfront. It’s also the last time the victim will see the “contractor.”
9. Government grant scam: The targeted person gets a call or an email or a letter saying they have qualified for a government grant and all they have to do is send money for the “processing” or “delivery” fee.
10. Work-from-home scam: After answering the online ad for the alluring job, the targeted person has to pay an advance fee for the information and materials. There is usually no job opportunity, with the scam compounded by ID theft.