#Middlebury #Seniors
If you get calls from people claiming to be from the utility company or an alleged family member, or even the Internal Revenue Service, and they try to scare you into making immediate payment, it’s surely a scam. One way to tell it’s a scam is if they insist you pay with gift cards, likely a Google Play or iTunes card. This is a theft problem that has increased 270 percent since 2015.
It can be tempting … especially if you’re told you’ve won something and only need to send a gift card to cover postage. You might be told that you missed jury duty and can post your bail with a gift card instead of being arrested. Or you might be told that you can get certain medical supplies that Medicare won’t pay for, or that you have a computer bug and they can fix it for you. There’s no end to the scenarios these thieves can think up.
Even if you fall for the scam, once might not be enough. Once they know how to manipulate you, they’ll come back again and again.
A note of warning: If you’re in a store buying a gift card and the clerk tells you it might be a scam, listen. They see this all the time and they’re trying to help you. There are at least seven different gift card scams out there right now.
To learn more, go online to the Federal Trade Commission and see ftc.gov/giftcards. If you’ve paid for something with a gift card, let the FTC know. The FTC website has the phone numbers of many companies that issue gift cards, including Amazon, MoneyPak and Steam. Also go online to giftcards.com and read up on gift card scams.
(c) 2018 King Features Synd., Inc.
You must be logged in to post a comment.