What are some common types of fraud and scams?

In this scam, the blackmailer threatens to share personal or private content about you. To keep them from sharing, they demand you send them money. Sometimes these scammers are strangers, or they might be someone you met online and thought you could trust.

What to do: Try to stay calm, even if they use pressure or threats. Stop communicating with them and don’t send them money. Keep all messages as evidence to give to law enforcement.

If you’re a minor, tell a trusted adult and report the threat to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s CyberTipline .

Report the scam to the police and to your local Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) field office , by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI, or visiting tips.fbi.gov . You can also report online scams, including those involving mobile payment apps, to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov . If the threat involves social media, consider reporting it to the social media company.

This scam is meant to play on your emotions and is often used to target older adults, especially during the holidays. If you get a call from someone who says they are your grandchild or another relative, and urgently need money to get out of trouble, it could be a scam.

Be careful, even if they sound exactly like your grandchild or relative or look like them in a photo or video sent to you with a plea for money. Artificial intelligence (AI) has made it easy for scammers to clone voices and create incredibly realistic images and video to make it seem like someone you know needs help.

What to do: Be careful if a caller insists on secrecy or says they need the money right away. Contact your relative directly using a trusted phone number to verify the story. If you can’t reach them, try to get in touch with another family member or trusted person, such as one of their friends. Report the scam to the police and to your local FBI field office , by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI, or visiting tips.fbi.gov . If someone is truly in trouble, law enforcement is best able to help quickly. Read more about other ways to protect yourself from elder fraud and financial exploitation.

Impostor scammers try to get you to send money or share account details by pretending to be from a government agency, financial institution, or other official organization.

In one example of this scheme, people received phone or video calls from scammers using CFPB employees’ names. The CFPB does NOT contact people to tell them to pay fees or taxes related to a class-action lawsuit or lottery. You also do not need to share personal information to cash a check we send you.

Scammers might also pose as law enforcement and threaten you with legal consequences if you don’t send them money. They could pretend to be a charity organization seeking donations. Other messages might look like they are coming from a bank or another company and claim there’s been a hack, suspicious activity, or another problem. These scams are meant to get your account number or personal information.

What to do: Remember that caller ID, text messages, and emails can be faked. Voices can be cloned, and official letterheads or government documents can be faked or altered using AI. To protect yourself, call the financial institution, company, organization, or government agency using the official phone number or website to confirm if there is a real problem. Read more about impostor scams .

A romance scam is when someone new tricks you into falling in love with them to get you to send them money. These scams usually start online. Scammers may spend a lot of time talking to you and building trust so you think the relationship is real. Then they ask you for money, a loan, or access to your accounts.

What to do: Be careful about who you connect with and what information you share online, or over texts or social media. Don’t send money or share sensitive personal information, such as bank account or credit card numbers or a Social Security number, with a new love connection.

A charity scam is when a person pretends to be a real charity to get money from you.

These scams often increase during the holiday season. They can also increase after natural disasters and emergencies, such as storms, wildfires, or earthquakes. Be careful if a charity calls, emails, or texts asking for donations—especially if they say they’re following up on a donation pledge you don’t remember making. Also be careful of donation requests on social media, including live streams, altered images, or voices created with artificial intelligence (AI). Scammers sometimes ask you to send money online, often using cryptocurrency, so they can get your money quickly.

What to do: Ask for details about the charity, like its address and phone number. Look up the charity online yourself (do not click on or use any links sent to you) or check a trusted third-party source to confirm that the charity is real. If you want to donate, do so by using the charity’s own trusted donation methods. See more steps to take to avoid a charity scam .

A lottery or prize scam is when someone calls, texts, or emails to tell you that you’ve won a prize through a lottery or sweepstakes and then asks you to pay money (for fees and taxes) to get it. In some cases, they may use a real employee’s name and claim to be from a federal government agency like the CFPB.

What to do: Avoid sharing any personal or financial information, including credit cards or Social Security numbers, with anyone you don’t know. Also, never make an upfront payment for a promised prize, especially if they demand that you pay right away.

Mail fraud letters look real, but the promises are fake. A common warning sign is a letter asking you to send money or personal information now to receive something of value later. Examples of mail fraud include notices of prizes, sweepstakes winnings, vacations, and other offers to claim valuable items.

What to do: The United States Postal Service (USPS) has identified common postal or mail fraud schemes . The US Postal Inspection Service also provides tips on mail fraud and where to report suspicious mail and related scam emails or texts. Read more about how to recognize and report mail fraud.

In this scam, someone takes your money and never provides the item or service you paid for. For example, scammers use mobile payment apps to get you to pay for a service, like home repairs—but they never do the work. Or you buy concert or sports tickets from someone, but you never receive them. A scammer could also try to get items or services from you without paying for them. They might purchase an item from you, appear to send you a payment, and then cancel it before it reaches your bank account.

What to do: Never send money to someone you don’t know. If you think you made a payment to a scammer, contact your bank or the company you used right away and tell them the transaction may be unauthorized. You can also file a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov.

Credit repair scammers promise that they—or their artificial intelligence (AI) bots—can remove negative information from your credit report, even if it is accurate and current. Warning signs include companies that guarantee a specific increase in your credit score and ask for up-front payment before they have provided any services.

What to do:

Remember that no one can remove accurate negative credit information from your credit report. If you do have errors in your credit report, disputing them is free and you can do it yourself or with the help of a legitimate credit counselor.

Don’t believe a credit repair company that promises to remove accurate and up-to-date information. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, they have no ability to do that. Moreover, credit repair companies cannot help you remove even inaccurate information. That is because, under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, credit reporting companies are generally not required to investigate or respond to disputes filed by someone else. Accordingly, if a credit repair company files a dispute on your behalf, it will not be reviewed by credit companies. You will need to do so yourself.

Avoid companies that tell you to knowingly file a false identity theft report — that’s a crime, and it could result in a fine, imprisonment, or both — and companies that promise to create a “new” credit identity or hide your bad credit history or bankruptcy.

If you have just signed up for a credit repair service, you have the right to cancel your contract with the company for any reason within three business days at no charge to you. Learn how to tell the difference between a credit repair scam and a reputable credit counselor.

Debt collectors might contact you about debts you owe. But scammers pretend to be debt collectors to get you to pay for debts you don't owe.

What to do: Ask the debt collector for their company name, mailing address, and information about the debt they say you owe. Watch for warning signs, like threats of criminal charges. Read more about warning signs of a debt collection scam.

Debt settlement or debt relief companies often promise to lower or change the terms of your debt. Working with these companies can be risky and may leave you in even deeper in debt.

What to do: Avoid companies that promise they can settle your debts. Also be careful of companies that charge fees before doing any work. Instead, think about working with a trusted nonprofit credit counseling program that can help you work with your lenders.  Learn more about the risks of working with a debt settlement or relief company and other help that might be available.

Foreclosure relief or mortgage loan modification scams try to take your money or your house by falsely promising to save you from foreclosure. Scammers might ask you to pay fees up front, promise to change your loan, ask you to sign over the title to your property, or get you to sign paperwork you don’t understand.

What to do: If you are having trouble making payments on your mortgage, a Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-approved housing counseling agency can help you understand your options and avoid scams. If you think you may have been a victim of a foreclosure relief scam, you can find legal help through your local bar association or legal aid. Learn more about mortgage loan modification scams.

Mortgage closing scams target homebuyers who are close to their closing date. The scammer tries to steal your closing funds, like your down payment or closing costs. They send an email pretending to be your real estate agent or settlement agent (such as your title company, escrow officer, or attorney).

What to do: These schemes are often hard to spot and may look like real conversations from your agent. Before closing, make a list of trusted contacts who can confirm the process and payment instructions. Write down their names and contact information so you can reach out to them directly. Learn more about how to protect your closing funds.

Check fraud happens when someone gets access to your checks or check images to make unauthorized purchases or withdrawals. Check washing is a type of check fraud that continues to grow, and happens when scammers use chemicals to change or erase the ink on real checks so they can rewrite the amount or the payees.

What to do: If you must write a check, use black permanent marker or black gel ink, which is harder for fraudsters to remove. When sending checks, take them directly to a post office instead of using your mailbox. To protect checks mailed to you, retrieve your mail frequently and don’t leave mail in your mailbox overnight. Learn more about check fraud and check washing .

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) logo appears on buildings, websites, ads, and other materials from its member banks. Scammers sometimes use the FDIC logo or claim that their accounts are insured or regulated by the FDIC, to make you think your money is safe when it isn’t. Some of these scams involve cryptocurrencies.

What to do: Check whether the business is an FDIC-insured bank by using the FDIC’s BankFind site.

In a man-in-the-middle scam, a scammer tricks you into connecting to a fake network or website by sending a fake QR code, link, or attachment for you to click. Once you connect, the scammer can steal information, like account details, passwords, or other personal data.

What to do: Avoid public Wi-Fi and free charging stations. Don’t click on QR codes, links, or attachments from unexpected texts or emails. Check email addresses and website URLs carefully, even if they appear to be from someone you know. Before sending money, contact the person using a trusted phone number and confirm. If you think you’ve been impacted by a man-in the-middle scam, you can also file a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov.

A money mule is someone who moves money for scammers. Some money mules know they’re helping the scammers, but others don’t realize it.

Scammers recruit money mules through online jobs, ads, or social media posts that promise easy money for little effort.

What to do: Don’t agree to receive money, deposit a check, or send money or packages for people you don’t know or haven’t met. Also, be aware of jobs that promise easy money. Learn more about the red flags and what to do if you think you might be involved in a money mule scam.

Scammers use mobile payment apps and wire transfers to steal people’s money. If someone you don’t know asks you to send them money—even if they say they are from a government agency—it’s a red flag.

Use mobile payment apps only with people you know and trust. Still be cautious when people you do know ask you to send them money. Before you send the money, confirm if it’s really them.

What to do: Never send money to someone you don’t know. If you think you made a money transfer or mobile app payment to a scammer, contact your bank or the payment company right away and alert them that there may have been an unauthorized transaction. You can also file a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov .

https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/mortgage-closing-scams-how-protect-yourself-and-your-closing-funds/