Common Wiring Scams
Here are some common ways scammers try to convince people to wire money. Please consider sharing tis with your employees and customers. Our next security update will focus on the bank’s wire process.
Apartment and vacation rental scams
You respond to an ad for an apartment or vacation rental with surprisingly low rent. When someone answers, they tell you to wire money through companies like MoneyGram, Ria, and Western Union — maybe for an application fee, security deposit, first month’s rent, or a vacation rental fee. But scammers often trick people by putting their own contact information on apartment or vacation rental ads and photos that they hijacked from someone else. After you wire the money, the person you sent the money to disappears and you find out that there is no apartment or vacation rental.
Fake Check Scams
Someone sends you a check and tells you to deposit it. They tell you to wire some or all of the money back to them — or to another person. Since the money appears in your bank account, you do it. But the check is fake. It can take weeks for the bank to figure it out, but when it does, the bank will want you to repay the money you withdrew.
Scammers make up lots of stories to try to convince you to deposit a check or wire money:
- Scammers say you’ve won a prize and need to wire money back to cover taxes and fees.
- Scammers say you got a job you applied for and send you a check to buy supplies, but tell you to wire part of the money back to them or on to someone else.
- Scammers say the check is part of a mystery shopper assignment to evaluate a wire transfer service.
- Scammers use a check to overpay you for something you’re selling online, then ask you to wire back the extra money.
Family Emergency Scams
You get an unexpected and frantic call from someone saying they’re a family member or close friend. They say they need money to get out of trouble and to wire money through companies like MoneyGram, Ria, or Western Union right away. Not so fast. Is there really an emergency? Is it really your friend or family calling or someone calling on their behalf? It could be a scammer. Scammers call and pretend to be someone you know — and now they can use artificial intelligence technology like voice cloning to sound very real.
Prize Scams
Scammers behind fake prize sweepstakes call, text, email, or send letters saying you’ve won money or a prize. But there’s always some “reason” they say you have to wire money first — like paying for shipping and handling, taxes, or a processing fee to get the prize. But real prizes are free, and this is a scam.
Romance Scams
Romance Scammers create fake profiles on dating sites, apps, and social media. Once they connect with you, they work to build your trust and might even talk or message with you several times a day. Eventually, they make up a story — like saying they have an emergency or want to travel to visit you — and ask you to send money. But there is no emergency or visit — they are not even the person they say they are — and they take your money.
Utility Scams
You get a call from someone claiming to be from your gas, water, or electric company. They say they’ll cut off your services unless you pay immediately by wiring money through companies like MoneyGram, Ria, or Western Union. These scammers want to scare you into sending money before you have time to confirm what they’re saying. But real utility companies don’t do this. A quick call to the utility company using the number on your bill or the utility company’s website would tell you it’s a scam.
What To Do if Wired Money went to a Scammer
Time is of the essence. As soon as it is known that a wire is fraudulent contact the Bank and ask them if they can reverse the wire transfer and try to get your money back. While there is no guarantee that any money can be recovered, the faster the process is started the better chance there is of any recovery.