Learn About Fraud And What You Can Do About It

Fraud efforts are increasing by targeting veterans, their families, survivors and carers. Fraud can be called intentional fraud as a result of loss of money or profit. Frauds or bad people are actively developing new strategies to deprive ex -servicemen of their hard earned money and benefits. A study by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) in November 2021 found that 78% of veterans were targeted by scams designed to take advantage of their military service history. Veterans are often targeted because they have benefits and access to resources. About 40% of the damage caused by the military community is about 40% of fraudulent scams. Cheating scams can be anything from online romance scam to grandparents, which is claimed that the grandson is in trouble. Often its goal is to achieve access to the benefits that the government provides to those who serve. Scams affect every age group and harm young and old people.

Below are some examples of the real life of fraud: A Marine Corps Sergeant came to know that dozens of fake Facebook accounts used using his stolen photos. These fake accounts flourish on many types of social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, where bad people take the form of real American military personnel and cheat people with money. Stories of such fraudulent scams are very popular. Another specific scam we see is advertising of special loan rates or conditions for military/giants. A retired soldier of a retired army experienced this by re -reinstating the favorable rates, but later he came to know that he suffered a loss of more than $ 25,000, while in turn he received only $ 5,000. He was taught to believe, but taught to verify and thought he had worked properly, but became a victim of fraud. Know that if you have experienced fraud, you are not alone. Shame or victim is often convicted in fraud stories. In reality, criminals are sophisticated and suffer from good intentions and beliefs. It should always be a shame for them, not for you.

We are retaliating with the initiative to provide safety and assistance to veterans, their families, survivors and carers. It is a partnership between toolkit federal agencies, veteran service organizations (VSOs), military service organizations (MSO) and VA to equip our veteres to be equipped with the knowledge of the general plans that we are seeing. We will provide suggestions and tricks to prevent this from happening. The first section of the toolkit talks about general fraud followed by the following areas: fraud scams, health care, finance, housing, pact act, employment, education, monumentation.

Table of Contents

Indicate that it’s a scam

The scamsters pretend to be from an organization that you know. Scamsters pretend to be a reliable source or any organization you know. The scamsters often pretend to contact you on behalf of the government. They can use real names like social security administration, America. Department of Veteran Affairs, IRS, Medicare, or Law Enforcement. Some people pretend to be from a business that you know, such as utility company, technology company, or even charity seeking charity. They can use the same name, logo or link as legitimate groups to confuse you.
The scamsters may appear to be from a reliable source. They can use real logo and links that seem fine because they appear to be valid links or similar names. Scamsters can use the names, pictures or attachments of real government officials to prove their validity and gain your confidence. They can also cheat valid phone numbers.
Scamsters can say that there is a problem or award, so they need to confirm the information. They can say that you are in trouble with the government, you outstand money, or someone in your family had an emergency. They can say that there is a virus on your computer, you have a package, or your refund is waiting for you. And often they include links to click on them that appear to be the website of a legitimate agency/organization.
Scamsters can pressurize you to take immediate action or share sensitive information. The scamsters want you to take action before you have time to think. If you are on the phone, they can ask you not to cut the phone so that you can’t see their story. This is what you want to do.
Scamsters can use payments that are difficult to detect. They often insist on the fact that you pay using cryptocurrency, by sending money through a company like Zele, Venmo, Moneygram, Western Union or paying a friend to a friend. These are all electronic banking apps that you must have loaded on your phone. They can also request you to put money on the gift card and then give them back PIN number.
If you do not pay, the scamsters can threaten to arrest you immediately. They can threaten legal action against you or your loved ones.

How to avoid scam

Protect your personal or financial information in response to any request that you did not expect, even if the caller had some personal information. Valid organizations will not send email or text to ask for your sensitive personal information, such as your social security number, bank account or credit card number.
Learn how a scammer tells you how to pay. Never pay a person who insists on paying you with a mobile payment app like cryptocurrency, venamo, zele, western union or wire transfer service, or gift cards like Moneygram. And never submit the check and never send the money back to anyone.
Block unwanted calls and text messages and report them as scamsters. Take steps to block unwanted calls and filter unwanted text messages. Use a call blocking or call labeling technique available on your cell phone or traditional landline. Many text and email apps will allow you to report number/e-mail.
Resist the pressure to take immediate action. Legal business will give you time to decide. Whoever pressures you to pay or give them their personal information is a scammer. Cut the phone and contact that organization directly using publicly available phone numbers.
Stop and talk to someone you trust. Before you do anything else, tell someone – a friend, family member, neighbor – what happened. Talking about it may make you realize that this is a scam. If you feel that the message you receive is a scam, then do not answer the message until you believe that you have verification that the message is valid. If the message belongs to a specific organization, use publicly available phone number to contact that organization.

How to report potential scam

Do not stand silently and do not let bad people steal the benefits you earned.

For health care-related fraud, please contact the Waitors Health Administration, Office of Integrity and Compliance Helpline 866-842-4357 (VHA-Help).

Call VA Benefits Hotline-1-800-827-1000 for suspected VA benefits fraud.

For all frauds related to non-discretionary cases, contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) online: https://reportfraud.ftc.gov

For more resources on frauds and scams, consumer protection financial bureau also provides additional equipment https://www.consumerfinance.gov/consumer- tools/fraud/

Scamsman Strategy – Do not click

Spoofing – Email address, social media profile, sender name, phone number or website address to hide so that you are confident that you are interacting with a reliable source.
Email Fishing – Email sent with the intention of cheating on you, such as updating passwords or clicking on an attachment.
Smashing – Fishing through text messaging. It may seem that the fraud text comes from a reputed business, but it is designed to cheat you to reveal personal information. Do not click on the link. Instead, log on to the official account directly on a secure computer browser.
Vishing – Voice is through phishing phone. The caller usually leaves an “immediate” message, which makes the recipient believe that if they do not respond immediately, they will be fined or they will miss the opportunity.
Angler Fishing – Social media targets users. Bad people get a message to disgruntled customers and get their personal information or other account credentials by pretending to be a customer service agent.
Evil Twin Hotspot- Fraud Wi-Fi access points are designed to cheat users to connect them so that they can steal sensitive information or redirect links to malicious sites.
Juice Jacking – Bad people use public USB port to insert malware and monitoring software on the device. Always keep your charger with you and use an electric outlet instead.
Pop-up phishing- Fraud messages that have been infected with malicious codes, otherwise “pop up” on valid websites attract you to click on them to contaminate your device or data.
Tell me about yourself – During phone calls, the scamster may ask you to verify who you are.

Security for you and your family

Cyber: Protect yourself. When receiving emails, rotate your cursor directly without clicking on the link, and read the pop -up text to see the desired destination, look for things like wrong spelling. Take care in whatever you download. Never open an email attachment of someone you do not know and be careful with the email attachments sent to you. Doubt the “urgent” marked email or text messages. Take care in sharing personal information like social security numbers online and on social media. Check that the actual email address matches the organization that they claim to be. Reach the official website, phone number email to re -confirm the official information. Check bad spelling or grammar, as well as confirm that logo is official.

Cyber: Activate multi-factor authentication on your accounts. Now the password is not enough to keep you safe online. Use multi-factor authentication whenever possible. The second layer of identity, such as a text message or email, can help the service provider verify the login. Update your software. Bad people take advantage of the flaws of the system, so it is important to update the operating system and application of their device. Do not click More than 90% of successful cyber attacks begin with fishing email. Once they get your information, they can use it on valid sites. They can also inspire you to run malicious software, also called malware. If this is a link that you don’t recognize, rely on your tendency, and do not click. Suspicious lessons also have dangerous links often. Use a strong password. Be conscious of password storage, complexity and use. Ensure that your passwords are unique, use a combination of letters, numbers and special characters and the case sensitive.

Security for you and your family – phone

Phone: If a person contacts you and claims that he is from the government or the army, there are some dangers that should be careful, indicating that you are being cheated, such as:

The voice call made by a computer without asking you to press the number to talk to someone, almost always a scam. Cut the phone on this type of call.
The caller asks for your personal information, such as your social security number, mother’s first name or bank account information.
The person calling the call claims to be from a government agency like IRS, VA or Social Security Administration or warns about any problem related to your social security number or other personal information.
They demand immediate payment, often encourages payment apps or service, gift cards, prepaid debit cards, wire transfer, cryptocurrency, bank transfer or payment, money order, or encouraged you to transfer your money to “protected” bank account.
If you do not pay, the caller threatens to arrest you or stop your utility services.
The caller claims that unless you listen to them, you will face legal action, which often involves payment or money transfer.
If you get interrogation from someone who says that they represent a company or government agency, cut the phone and call your account details, or phone number on the website of the company or government agency to verify the authenticity of the request. Before getting a call from a valid source, you will usually find a written statement in the mail, especially if the calling is asking for payment.

Immediate action: If you feel that you are a victim of a fraudulent scam, it is important to take immediate action to protect yourself and your finance. If you feel that you are cheated, some steps have been taken here:

Stop all contacts with the person (individuals) contacting you.
If you need to take legal action, then save all information or messages about the person (individuals) who pretended to contact you.
If you have provided financial information, such as your credit card number or bank account information, then contact your bank or credit card company immediately. They can help you cancel the transaction or get your money back.
If you have sent money through gift card or money transfer, report the scam to the issuer. They can help you stop transactions. Go to their website and get their contact information.
If you have provided personal information like your social security number, you may be at risk of identity theft. Report to theft and get recover plan https://www.identateTheft.gov
Keep an eye on your credit report and financial accounts for any unusual activity and consider stopping your credit.
Equifax Security Freeze https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit-RPort- Services/credit-freeze/.
Experian Freeze Credit https://www.experian.com/freeze/Centempra https://www.transunion.com/credit-freeze
Consider adjusting your mobile settings to block spam calls, texts and emails.

Security for you and your family – identity

Use additional safety measures such as multi-functional identity, which requires two or more evidence of identity to provide you access.
Do not share your login information with others on the phone or via email.
Install electronic access to all financial accounts. You can set the alert to send you a message with each transaction, so that you can track activity as well as other alerts. If possible, use the app to access it as it has more encryption and other security. You will not have to wait for a month or a quarter to review your account activity.
Do not deposit the VA profit directly to the bank account of any family member or careful, unless the person is appointed by the court or the delegation appointed by the VA.
To protect yourself from identity -related fraud in future, add a warning of fraud to your credit report. For warning of fraud, the lender is required to contact you before opening a new account in your name.
Equifax Fraud Warning https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit- Report- Services/credit-Fraud
Experian fraud warning https://www.experian.com/fraud/Centempra https://www.transunion.com/fraud- alerts
If you are uncomfortable with the call of someone claiming to be from VA, cut the phone, and call myva411 or your local VA facility to confirm whether the call was valid or not.
Change your login information.

Fraud scam

Do not send money in response to an unexpected request or do not share personal information – whether it comes as a direct message on text, phone calls, emails or social media.
Scams can be confident and find ways to show their story real. They sometimes use information from social networking sites to convince you that they know you. They can hack the email account of a loved one so that it seems that it is actually someone you know.
Is there any distressed friend or loved one in touch? See it. See the phone number of that person yourself and check in. Call another family member and find out what they know. Is there any real emergency?
Does it seem that this is the phone of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)? Hang IRS will never contact you on the phone in the beginning. The actual IRS will not accept the payment by prepaid debit cards, iTunes card, gift card or wire transfer. They will not even ask for a credit card on the phone. If you have tax related questions, go to IRS.Gov or call IRS on 1-800-829-1040.
The same applies to Social Security Administration (SSA). SSA will not request payment by prepaid debit card, iTunes card, gift card or wire transfer.
To get friendship request from those on social media with whom you are already friends. This is an indication that your friend’s account may be fake.
Does any caller say that you have been selected to get grant or other money from the government? Even if you have recently completed the free application for Federal Students Assistance (FAFSA), a real government agency will not ask you to pay for a processing fee or grant related to FAFSA which has already been given to you.
Does the caller say that your computer has a virus and they can help? Hang Never control your computer or credit card information to someone who suddenly calls you.
Is your online romantic interest asking for money? Scams make fake profiles and sometimes use photographs of other people-even use stolen photos of real military personnel. Scamsters want your money in such a way that it becomes difficult for you to get it back. They will ask you to send money through a company like Western Union or Moneygram, insert money on gift cards (such as Amazon, Google Play, iTunes or Steam) and give them PIN code, send money through money transfer app or transfer the cryptocurrency.

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