BBB Tip of the Week: Is social media friend or foe

A report was recently submitted to the BBB Scam Tracker that a man had been scammed out of $60,000 because of a friend request he had received. The fake friend request was an impersonation of the gentleman’s friend from years in the past. From accepting a friend request to a series of text messages grooming trust and hope for a large sum of money, and through fifteen transactions, an entire life savings is gone. Like most scams, this situation had many of the warning signs.

The Better Business Bureau serving the Northwest suggests you keep these things in mind when communicating through social media accounts:

Ask around. If you don’t know them, don’t accept. If they are a “long ago friend” that is trying to reconnect, see if there are any friends in common and see if there is activity on their page. Contact mutual friends you know via Messenger to see if they have had contact with them.

Avoid “offline” communication. Scammers will attempt to earn your trust and then quickly move the conversation to texting or email and will avoid ways that you will know they aren’t who they are impersonating.

Money for help or benefit. Impersonators will earn your trust and then come up with a reason for you to send money. For example, a need for help with medical bills, travel to see a sick loved one or that you have won money.

Never wire money. A sure sign of a scam is the request to wire funds. Even if they offer to send you a check and ask you to wire the money back. Typically, they are sending you a check that is not valid and you are sending them your money. Wired funds cannot be recovered.

Check your privacy settings. Tighten your security settings on your social media accounts so the general public can’t see what you are posting, and be careful about the things you do post.