How to protect yourself from scam text messages – NBC Los Angeles

the Federal Trade Commission The FTC is warning consumers about a new way scammers are using to obtain money or personal information.

Scammers send text messages To catch their victims the most common scams are impersonating a banking institution.

Consumers have lost more than $300 million so far in 2023 after falling for scams that reach out to them through these means. To date, according to the Federal Trade Commission, they have received 25,725 complaints.

In the summer, there is usually an uptick in scams being carried out against Amazon customers, which is why they raise the alert level and make recommendations for consumer protection.

In 2019, they received only 1,355 claims.

Ironically, as the FTC explains, in scams of this kind, the potential victim is asked to confirm whether they are the victim of the scam.

Scammers ask you to confirm whether you’ve made large financial transactions or suspect suspicious activity on your account. They use a tone of urgency that would piss anyone off.

The FTC notes that scammers contact a potential victim by pretending to be from the fraud department of their bank. They ask for personal information like Social Security to steal your identity.

They may also ask you to make a transaction via Zelle or another payment method that is difficult to trace. In this way, you will send money voluntarily, without suspecting it.

This is why the FTC urges consumers to exercise caution and follow these tips:

• Do not reply to the message and do not click on the link it carries.
• If you have questions, contact your bank. You can get the number on your debit or credit card, on the bank’s website, or in correspondence you receive from your bank.
• Once you determine that the message came from a scammer, take a screenshot of it, block the number, and delete the message.

Report the scam to your bank, phone provider, and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for help combating the problem. To report this to the FTC, click here.