Cybersecurity and Scams Alert

By Aline Wealth Management on May 31, 2024

We continue to see that scammers and fraudsters are still hard at work trying to take advantage of innocent people. I know that most of you know someone, or even yourselves, that has been a victim of some sort of fraud. We wanted to share with all of you what we are seeing so that you can have awareness and protect yourself from these scams.

The most common scams we are seeing now are the ones where someone is asking you to pay for an item or service using gift cards. Here are how some of them are being done.

You receive an email or a text message from a major retailer telling you that a purchase was made, and they are verifying the purchase.  A phone number is provided for you to call if you haven’t made the purchase. And of course you did not make the purchase. When you call the number, they direct you to their “fraud” department where you are instructed to buy gift cards to pay for the item. They might even be so bold as to tell you what stores to buy the gift cards from. You are then instructed to give them the information on the back of the card which gives them full access to the card. We are also seeing this scam where they are claiming to be from your electric company or other familiar companies that you may be using. The scammers tell you that your bill hasn’t been paid and to contact them immediately. In some cases, they go to the extent of telling you that your electricity or power will be turned off if you don’t make the payment.

 Here are some things to remember:

1. A Fraud department is supposed to help ensure you are not charged for an item that you did not purchase. If you notice a purchase on your credit card and call the credit card company directly, they will help you file a fraud report. They do not make you pay for the item you did not purchase.
2. No legitimate company will ask you to pay for anything with gift cards.
3. If you receive an email or text message about a purchase on your Amazon or any other account, go directly to that known account site to verify if there was a purchase made.
4. Never call the phone number or click on any links provided in the email or text message. Again, use the known website domain and phone number on the site to reach out to them directly if you do see a purchase that was not made by you.
5. Do not click on links in text messages or emails from unknown sources.
6. If you have been a victim of this scam, save your gift cards and receipt and contact the fraud department within the government authorities.

We are also still seeing fraud within investment and bank accounts. Most companies are improving their communication with their clients for all banking and money movement transactions and sending their clients email alerts for all types of transactions. 

Here is what we are seeing. The fraudsters will go into your accounts and add a bank link to the account and then try to transfer the funds out of the account. Be aware of all email notices you receive on your accounts. If you receive an email confirming a bank link and you did not do it, reach out to your bank, or us, immediately.  We have also seen an instance where an account was requested to be transferred to another firm, which was not initiated by the client. So, either with bank links or transfer of assets, these scammers are trying to take your assets and move them into their possession. 

These scammers are still out there praying on innocent people, so it is very important to stay vigilant and be aware.  They will try to catch you off guard and create a sense of urgency so that you don’t have time to think it through. Take a minute to stop and think about it. Reach out to a friend or family member to talk through it with them first. Or call me and I would be happy to help you verify if this is for real or if it is a scam. 

Please take a minute to review this helpful link that will give you more information on more scams that the government is seeing and how you can report them if you have been a victim.

Avoiding and Reporting Gift Card Scams

Please feel free to reach out to me at ccrunden@alinewealth.com if you have any questions.

Catherine Cruden

Executive Director

631.760-7637

ALINE Wealth is a group of investment professionals registered with Hightower Securities, LLC, member FINRA and SIPC, and with Hightower Advisors, LLC, a registered investment advisor with the SEC. Securities are offered through Hightower Securities, LLC; advisory services are offered through Hightower Advisors, LLC.

Third-party links and references are provided solely to share social, cultural and educational information. Any reference in this post to any person, or organization, or activities, products, or services related to such person or organization, or any linkages from this post to the web site of another party, do not constitute or imply the endorsement, recommendation, or favoring of ALINE Wealth or Hightower Advisors, LLC, or any of its affiliates, employees or contractors acting on their behalf. Hightower Advisors, LLC, do not guarantee the accuracy or safety of any linked site.