Criminals go where the action is – and these days, that’s social media.
About 25% of all fraud losses reported to the Federal Trade Commission in 2021 resulted from scams that started with social media ads, posts, or messages.
More than 95,000 people said they lost a total of $770 million last year in scams that involved social media.
“If you receive a message from someone that you don’t know or that you haven’t spoken to in a long time on social media, it’s more likely than not that it’s a scam, so don’t respond,” said John Breyault, who runs the website Fraud.org, a service of the National Consumers League. “It’s a very common tactic for scammers to try and get their communications with victims off of these platforms as quickly as possible; get them to WhatsApp, to text message, or to email, because those are unmonitored channels, and it makes it easier for the scammer to defraud you.”
Take these simple steps to protect yourself:
- If someone appears on your social media and rushes you to start a friendship or romance— slow down. Better yet, block that person if you are suspicious.
- Never send money to someone you haven’t met in person, no matter how much you care for them, or how desperate the appeal for help.
- Never accept investment advice from a “friend” on social media, even if it’s a message from someone you know—their account may have been hacked.
More Info: Social Media Scams Are Skyrocketing. Here’s How to Protect Yourself. (This story includes an interview with Emma Fletcher, a senior data researcher in the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.)
