BOISE, Idaho — The Idaho Department of Finance (IDOF) is alerting the public to a rise in "imposter scams," which targeted 14,424 Idahoans, totaling $40.6 million in fraud losses in 2023, according to a recent report.
The IDOF said that Idahoans are being increasingly targeted by imposter-like scams as technology continues to evolve. A report by the Federal Train Commission (FTC) ranked number 38 out of the 50 states for the scams.
The department identified imposter scams as malicious activity with the intent of committing a crime. Oftentimes the imposter will pose as a government entity such as the IRS or social security, a local charity, and may sometimes even disguise themselves as a relative or friend to the person whom they are trying to scam.
According to the FTC, imposter scams were the most common type of fraud nationwide in 2023. The commission stated that 853,935 imposter scams were reported across the country, amounting to $2.7 billion in financial losses.
As fraudsters and tech become more sophisticated, it is important to recognize scam attempts and be aware of the resources available to report the crime.
The FTC provided the following examples of imposter scams and what not to do:
- Fraudster Tactic:
- Pretending to financial advisor/bank employee, claiming account has been compromised.
- Fraudster pretends to be someone you can trust, such as family or friend in need of money.
- A bad actor contacts you saying they are with a government agency, often claiming to be employed by the FTC, Social Security Administration, IRS or even Medicare.
- DO NOT:
- Don't move or transfer your money. The FTC stated that banks will not reach out to customers nor will advise to move any amount of money into a different account.
- Never share verification codes with someone and do not engage with the fraudster.
- Do not engage and cease all communication.
- Never give your personal information or wire money to a scammer posing to be a government employee. Government employees will never reach out via call, email, text, or message on social media asking for money or tell you that you won a lottery or sweepstakes.
- Don't ever click on a link from an unsolicited email.
- Never wire, transfer, or move money to any sort of account or individual that is not your trusted banking/financial institution.
- REPORT IT! If you are targeted by this kind of imposter scam, reach out to the legitimate business and report it to the FTC here.
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