General Information for Scam Victims
Scammers are getting smarter — and unfortunately, older adults are often their top targets. From phone calls to fake websites, these schemes can be convincing and costly. Here you can learn how to take action if you have been a victim of a scam.
Be on the lookout for illegitimate legal or law enforcement follow-up:
In the coming weeks, be very wary of any contact from people claiming to be law enforcement or the FBI calling to follow up on your case. The FBI will not call you directly to open an investigation. If someone calls you claiming to be from the FBI, hang up the phone immediately. If you want to confirm that the call was legitimate, you can contact the Buffalo FBI Field Office at 716-856-7800. This office serves all counties in New York State except those within New York City.
Scammers pretending to be law enforcement might say they are now monitoring your account, so when the scammer contacts you again they try to tell you that it is okay to send more money because this time it is being tracked. However, legitimate law enforcement will never ask you to put yourself at risk in this way. Scammers might also claim that they have recovered your stolen funds and ask for your bank account details to make a deposit. If law enforcement does recover your lost money, they would never return it to you in this way. No legitimate law enforcement or governmental agency will request this information from you over the phone. If anyone comes to your house claiming to be law enforcement, ask for their identification, and call 911 if they refuse to give it to you.
Beware of future scams:
Fraud victims have a much higher chance of being the target of future scams. Scammers create and trade lists with the names and contact information of victims they have successfully scammed. Since you have already been deceived once, they hope to be able to defraud you again. Your information may be included on one of these lists, so you will likely receive an increase in solicitations.
Scammers use number spoofing technology, which allows them to access your caller ID to look like they are calling from a local number. The best way to protect yourself is to screen your calls and not answer if you don’t recognize the number, even if it looks local. If you do answer, be extra vigilant of anyone contacting you and asking for personal information or money for any reason. Never give this information over the phone to someone unknown to you. As an additional step, you may want to add your name to the National Do Not Call Registry by visiting https://www.donotcall.gov or calling 1-888-382-1222. You can also prevent potential future scam calls by registering with NoMoRobo, sign up at https://www.nomorobo.com.
You may also consider looking up common scams in your area by using the Better Business Bureau Scam Tracker https://www.bbb.org/scamtracker or scam alerts from the Federal Trade Commission is available at https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/features/scam-alerts. If you are unsure if a caller is legitimate, don’t hesitate to look up the name of the business the caller claims to be from and call back on that number. In addition, don’t hesitate to contact a trusted family member or friend regarding the call. You can always contact our office for assistance.
Make a police report and keep a copy for your records:
You should make a police report if you have not already. There is no timeline in which you must file a police report. You may need this later on to prove that your funds were stolen, not gifted, and that you were the victim of a scam. Make sure to ask the law enforcement agency that took your police report to give you a copy.
File an Elder Fraud complaint with the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3):
The IC3 is the FBI office responsible for receiving Elder Fraud complaints. If you or someone you know may be a potential victim of elder fraud, file a complaint by visiting www.ic3.gov online and selecting ‘File a Complaint’. The IC3 receives and tracks thousands of complaints daily reported by victims of fraud. Any person aged 60 or older could be considered a victim of Elder Fraud. IC3 reporting is key to identifying, investigating, and holding those responsible accountable for their actions. You should retain a copy of your complaint for your records. If applicable, you may also include information about the fraudulent financial transactions and any information used by the criminals such as bank accounts, addresses, e-mails, websites, and phone numbers. Remember to report immediately!
Read the IC3 brochure here .
Report fraud to the Federal Trade Commission:
Report the scam to the Federal Trade Commission. Your FTC report will be combined with other similar reports to help prevent fraud in the future for all. You must use either a police, IC3 or FTC report to assist you in disputing any fraudulent charges with your creditors. You can file a fraud report by calling 1-877-382-4357 or by visiting identitytheft.gov.
File a claim with the New York State Office of Victim Services:
You may be able to receive compensation of $100 per transaction for the loss of essential personal property, including losses from cash and gift cards by applying for Victim Compensation through New York State Office of Victim Services. You may fill out one application per scam transaction. You may visit ovs.ny.gov to access the secure Victim Service Portal (VSP) and file an application online. The Office of Victim Services has a toll-free telephone number and can be reached at 1-800-247-8035, or you can call 716-847-7992. The Buffalo Office is located at 65 Court Street, Room 308, Buffalo, NY 14202. Please keep in mind that OVS is the “payer of last resort”, after all other resources have been exhausted.
Consult a tax professional:
You may be able to claim your losses as a deduction on your tax return. If you withdrew any funds from an IRA or retirement account to send to the scammer, you may be liable for early withdrawal penalties or additional taxes. Contact your tax preparer to discuss the specifics of your situation.
Change and protect your information:
If the scammer has your phone number, change it. They will likely continue to contact you.
You may also wish to request an IRS PIN number to prevent someone who obtained your personal information from filing a fraudulent tax return in your name. You can do so by visiting www.IRS.gov and clicking on “Get an Identity Protection PIN.” You can also do this by calling your local IRS office or contacting the central IRS phone line at 844-545-5640.
You can also contact your mobile or landline provider and inquire about scam call blocking or identifying features. If it is possible that the scammer had access to your banking information or credit cards, close your accounts and open new ones. Frequently review your account statements to verify no unauthorized transactions have occurred. Destroy financial documents such as old bank statements or credit offers that contain account numbers and account information.
Run your free credit report at www.annualcreditreport.com and look for any suspicious activity or accounts you do not recognize. You are entitled to one free weekly report from each of the three credit bureaus.
Change and strengthen your passwords and consider enabling two-factor authentication. Strong passwords contain a mix of capital and lower-case letters, special characters, and numbers. Do not use the same password across multiple accounts or websites.
Place a Credit Alert or Freeze with the three nationwide Credit Bureaus:
You may contact any of the three nationwide credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — to request a fraud alert. Once you place an alert with one of the bureaus, that bureau will send your request to the other two bureaus. Placing an alert will require lenders and creditors to take steps to verify whether it is you requesting credit before granting it. An initial alert informs your creditors that you have been or may have been a victim of fraud and is free and lasts for one year. Once you provide the credit bureaus with a police report, you can request an extended 7-year fraud alert. You can contact Experian at 1-888-397-3742. You can call Equifax at 1-800-525-6285, and the number for Transunion Fraud Victim Assistance Department is 1-800-680-7289.
You can also choose to apply a credit freeze, also known as a security freeze, which will prevent any new credit accounts from being opened in your name even if you are the one applying for the account. You need to lift the freeze in order to apply for new credit accounts and then you must put the freeze back in place once you have obtained the credit you need. Choosing between a credit alert and a credit freeze may come down to how often you expect to need access to your credit report.
Place a Security Alert with ChexSystems or dispute incorrect information on your ChexSystems consumer report:
ChexSystems is a nationwide consumer reporting agency that tracks a person’s banking history. Banks, credit unions and other financial institutions regularly contribute information on closed checking and savings accounts to ChexSystems. This information is used by financial institutions to assess the risk of opening accounts for customers. As the victim of identity theft or fraud, you may want to place an Identity Theft Security Alert or Freeze in your ChexSystems consumer file. You may also want to dispute any negative reporting to let banks and credit unions know that negative activity in your bank account was the result of fraud or identity theft.
Placing an Alert
To place an alert online, visit: https://www.chexsystems.com/security-alert-online, and log in to the Consumer Portal or register for an account. You can also call ChexSystems to place an alert by calling 888-478-6536 between 8:00am-7:00pm CT, Monday through Friday. The automated phone system is available 24 hours per day, if you choose to call outside regular business hours.
An alert lasts for one year but may be extended for seven years if you submit a notarized Identity Theft Affidavit, which is a form that can be found on the ChexSystems website at: https://www.chexsystems.com/-/media/Project/ChexSystems/ChexSystems/PDF/Affidavit.pdf. Follow the instructions on the form on how to submit the affidavit by mail to ChexSystems Consumer Relations.
ChexSystems Security Freeze
A security freeze prohibits a consumer reporting agency from releasing any information in your consumer file without your expressed authorization. You can contact the ChexSystems Security Freeze Department by calling 1-800-887-7652 or by mail: Chex Systems, Inc. Attn: Security Freeze Department PO Box 583399, Minneapolis, MN 55458. Correspondence for placing a security freeze must include the consumer’s name, current address, date of birth, and Social Security number. For more information about placing a Security Freeze with ChexSystems online visit: https://www.chexsystems.com/security-freeze/place-freeze.
Check Your ChexSystems Report
You are entitled to a free copy of your ChexSystems report, also known as a consumer disclosure report, at a minimum once every 12 months. You can request a copy of your ChexSystems report by calling the automated phone system at 1-800-428-9623 between 9:00am-8:00 pm EST, Monday through Friday. You can also request a copy of your report by mail using the Consumer Request for Disclosure Form found on the ChexSystems website at: https://www.chexsystems.com/-/media/Project/ChexSystems/ChexSystems/PDF/ConsumerRequestforDisclosureEnglish.pdf. Print and mail this form to: Chex Systems, Inc. Attn: Consumer Relations, PO Box 583399, Minneapolis, MN 55458.
Disputes
If you are a victim of Identity Theft that impacted your checking or savings account, you may want to dispute information in your Chex System report. Adverse reporting may impact your ability to open new accounts at other financial institutions. You may submit a dispute to alert financial institutions that the negative account activity being reported was the result of a scam or identity theft. Include as much supporting documentation as possible. Helpful documents to submit with your report include an Identity Theft Affidavit, police report, account statements, paid or settled in full letters, death certificates, and other such documents.
You can submit a dispute online as www.chexsystems.com/dispute or by calling 1-800-428-9623. You may also submit a dispute by mail to the following address: Chex Systems, Inc. Attn: Consumer Relations PO Box 583399 Minneapolis, MN 55458.
Contact us
If you have any further questions regarding the information contained in this letter, please do not hesitate to contact your local Center for Elder Law & Justice office or visit elderjusticeny.org
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438 Main Street, Suite 1200, Buffalo NY 14202
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314 Central Avenue, Suite 300, Dunkirk, NY 14048
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175 Walnut Street, Suite 1, Lockport NY 14094