Digital Money Scams On The Rise: How To Avoid Them

It’s so easy to transfer cash these days. All you need is a smartphone and a service that sends cash in seconds. These digital mobile payment cash apps, though, can be used for scams.

Digital cash app scams have one thing in common: Someone wants to steal your money by contacting you through the app, a text, email or call. They will use the following ruses to open up the door to thievery:

• They claim to be from a government agency.
• They are a telemarketer trying to sell you something.
• They claim your “account is compromised.”
• They pitch “unauthorized, unverified cryptocurrency sites or salespeople.”
• They may even ask you to send money to yourself or claim they sent you money by mistake.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, here’s how these scams work:

“Scammers might pretend to be a loved one who’s in trouble and ask you for money to deal with an emergency. Others might say you won a prize or a sweepstakes but need to pay some fees to collect it.”

Keep this advice in mind if you send money through a mobile payment app:

• Don’t send a payment to claim a prize or collect sweepstakes winnings.
• Don’t give your account credentials to anyone that contacts you.
• Protect your account with multi-factor authentication or a PIN.
• Before you submit any payment, double-check the recipient’s information to make sure you’re sending money to the right person.
• If you get an unexpected request for money from someone you do recognize, speak with them to make sure the request really is from them — and not a hacker who got access to their account.

Have you been scammed? Report it immediately to you bank and local law enforcement and alert the FTC.