{"id":14298,"date":"2019-01-10T14:10:03","date_gmt":"2019-01-10T22:10:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/2019\/01\/10\/news-8050\/"},"modified":"2019-01-10T14:10:03","modified_gmt":"2019-01-10T22:10:03","slug":"news-8050","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.palada.net\/index.php\/2019\/01\/10\/news-8050\/","title":{"rendered":"Social Security Number scammers are at it again"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Credit to Author: Jovi Umawing| Date: Thu, 10 Jan 2019 21:05:26 +0000<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) once again\u00a0sounded the alarm<\/a> in mid-December about the latest Social Security Number (SSN) scam that continues to affect thousands of Americans<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While most of us were only able to read about this type of scam in the past, the FTC now has an audio recording of an SSN scam robocall<\/a>, which they\u00a0released<\/a> two weeks after the warning.<\/p>\n

Play the audio below and familiarize yourselves with what an SSN scam sounds like. Take note of the sentence phrasing and the mild threat at the near end of the automated recording directed to those who aren\u2019t motivated enough to call back the number it provided.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/blog.malwarebytes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/ssa_robocall.mp3<\/a><\/audio> <\/p>\n

Transcription:<\/p>\n

…law enforcement agencies to suspend your Social Security number on an immediate basis, as we have received suspicious trails of information in your name. The moment you receive this message, I need you to get back to me on my department division toll-free number that is 1-888-952-5554. I repeat 1-888-952-5554. Verify the last four digits of your Social Security number when you call to better assist you with this issue. Now, if I don\u2019t hear a call from you, we will have to issue an arrest warrant under your name and get you arrested. So, get back to me as soon as possible. Thank you.<\/em><\/p>\n

This particular recording wasn\u2019t specific about the \u201csuspicious trails of information\u201d they were referring to, but there have been reports to the FTC of scammers linking their target\u2019s SSN to certain crimes they claim are taking place\u00a0in Texas<\/a>, such as illegally sending money outside of the country.<\/p>\n

The FTC noted that the threat of individuals or groups pretending to be from the Social Security Administration (SSA) are growing at an exponential rate. In fact, there was a 994 percent increase in SSN scams reported to FTC\u2014from 3,200 in 2017 to 35,000 in 2018.<\/p>\n

Not just a numb3rs g4m3<\/h3>\n

One attribute that makes SSN scams successful (and makes one likely to be more accepting of calls) is the scammers\u2019 use of technology to mimic the legitimate contact number of the Social Security Administration (SSA) so that appears in the caller ID when contacting targets. In this case, the scammers used 1-800-772-1213<\/a>, the SSA\u2019s national customer service number. Yet, SSN scams are more than just a numbers game.<\/p>\n

Seeing red<\/h3>\n

To help clue you in on other tactics used by SSN scammers, below is a list of red flags or tactics these scammers practice that anyone with a Social Security Number should at least be familiar with:<\/p>\n