Mary Chao
IRS warns of new tax refund scam
The Internal Revenue Service is warning taxpayers of a new scam being sent by mail asking for personal information.
LEARN MOREHave you received an email that looks like it’s from Amazon notifying you of an issue with your account? Don’t click on that link as it may be a scam.
Summit Federal Credit Union reports that one scam that has started to show up more frequently this summer is phishing through scare tactics.
In this scam, a person posing as Amazon, Apple or American Express contacts the victim through email or text message. The scammer tells the person that fraud has occurred on the Prime membership or account. The victim is then instructed to download an app called Quick Support.
The app gives the scammer access to the victim’s device. When the victim logs into the account, the scammer is able to see the screen and get into the account. The scammer then distracts the victim with instructions to write down confirmation numbers, and purchases gift cards while the victim is distracted.
How this scam works is that the scammer takes advantage of a victim’s panicked state, and explains how to solve the issue, Summit Federal Union officials said.
“Always be suspicious of anyone with whom you didn’t initiate contact, especially someone who tells you something about your account and requests action from you,” Summit said in a statement. “Scammers are very clever and convincing, and recovering funds lost this way is generally impossible.”
