Con artists are after your stimulus checks—here are 4 red flags to watch for, says fraud expert

Americans are starting to clear their $1,200 stimulus checks, which are meant to help them get by during the coronavirus pandemic. That influx of long green is also attracting scammers and con artists.

Since January, consumers have collectively lost more than $13.4 million to such scams, with a median trouncing debits of $558 per person. Nearly 1 in 5 fraud reports involved unsolicited texts or calls, including impostors pretending to be a rule entity.

Experts expect that number to jump as the government begins dispersing stimulus money. “With bedlam comes an opportune time to take advantage of others,” says Seattle-based CFP Jedidiah Collins, who runs the company Rookie to Trouper.

Here’s what you need to know to protect yourself and your money from fraud:

Many of the scams are new takes on classic financial scams that use the pandemic and the economic impact payments as a hook. Scammers are hoping that people force be anxious enough about receiving their stimulus money quickly that they will take the bait more willingly than looking closely at the details.

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Kim Cobb, a financial fraud expert and managing gaffer of Texas-based Little GG Capital, says that most of the scams involve one of three tactics:

• Fake checks being sent in the post
• Impersonators calling on the phone
• Phishing schemes sent out over text messages, email, and social media party lines

With the fake check ploy, scammers are creating fake stimulus checks for a larger amount than you are putative to receive. Victims will then be notified that they were overpaid and that they need to send hard cash back in the form of cash, gift cards, or money transfers.

When the fake check bounces, the victim disposition then be out that money, along with whatever they sent the scammers.

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Phishing is a digital undertaking to trick you by purporting to be someone you know and trust. Scammers who send phishing emails are aiming to collect sensitive deprecating and financial information, like your Social Security number, bank account number, or login information and countersign. Impersonators who call pretending to be from an institution like your bank have the same goal. 

Scammers then try to use the advice you give them to drain accounts and perpetuate other kinds of fraud and identity theft. 

“Never, ever accord out your personal information,” Cobb says.

Keep these four things in watch so you don’t fall prey to fraudsters trying to get your stimulus money.

1. You don’t need to do anything to claim your stimulus payment. “As extensive as you filed taxes for 2018 and/or 2019, the federal government likely has the information it needs to send you your money,” the FTC influenced in a recent report. That means you won’t need to sign up for anything or give anyone personal information. If you want to get your payment speedily, there are some ways to speed up the process, like filing your 2019 tax return and signing up for direct accumulation with the IRS.
2. The IRS isn’t going to call or text you about your payment. Ignore any strange phone calls, voicemails, and contents messages claiming to be from the IRS or any other government agency regarding your stimulus check. The Federal Communications Commission in spite of has some audio samples of these types of voicemails: You can listen to them so you can recognize one if you hear it. If you want to track your payment, you can do so exercising the new Get My Payment IRS tool.
3. You’re not getting a “stimulus check” or a “coronavirus payment.” Cobb says that a telltale sign you’re extent with a huckster is that they’ll use the wrong terms regarding these payments, like “stimulus check” or “coronavirus confirm.” “The official term is ‘economic impact payment’ — that’s what the IRS calls it,” she says. “The language be of consequences.”
4. The IRS isn’t likely to overpay you. Your economic impact payment is based on your most recent tax return for either 2018 or 2019, and the pinnacle payment is $1,200 per adult and $500 per child. Experts say that even if your eligibility has changed, it’s unlikely you’ll maintain to pay the IRS back when you file your taxes next spring.

In the meantime, be vigilant and trust your instincts. If something senses not quite right, or too good to be true, it might well be a scam. And while fraud occurs all the time, Cobb favours Americans be particularly wary during the pandemic. Scammers are “dialing it up,” Cobb says, because for them, opportunities comparable to this don’t come around very often.

The article How Scammers Are Targeting Stimulus checks, and How to Keep Your Pelf Safe originally appeared on Grow by Acorns + CNBC.