security
IC3 says any account claiming to represent it is fake
Real FBI agents won’t slide into your DMs and offer to help you recover stolen funds. The bureau’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) updated an earlier warning on Monday about scammers impersonating the agency online, saying fraudsters continue to use the scheme “to deceive and revictimize individuals.”
According to IC3, there are two different schemes being used to target cybercrime victims, both directly and by soliciting them to report incidents.
In the first scheme, IC3 said scammers create fraudulent social media profiles and pages impersonating FBI personnel or IC3. They may also infiltrate online groups for fraud victims or contact victims directly while claiming to represent the FBI or the complaint center.
In other cases, victims are being contacted by someone claiming to be an FBI agent after realizing they were approached by someone trying to scam them and saying they intended to report the incident to the FBI or file an IC3 complaint. The FBI said the impersonator then directs victims to a fake IC3 update page or continues communicating through messaging apps.
In the other instance, scammers are creating AI-generated videos on social media depicting senior FBI officials and directing users to a spoofed IC3 website to report cybercrimes they may have fallen victim to, with the scammers then collecting the information and using it to contact victims for further fraud. AI-generated depictions of public figures are similarly being used to make such scams appear legitimate.
“Some individuals received an email or a phone call, while others were approached, or observed an advertisement via social media or forums,” the IC3 said. “Almost all complainants indicated the scammers claimed to have recovered the victim’s lost funds or offered to assist in recovering funds.”
Regardless of how legitimate social media profiles look, or how realistic those AI-generated videos may be, the IC3 is warning that none of them should be believed for a simple reason: The IC3 doesn’t have a social media presence of any kind, and it doesn’t investigate crimes or offer to recover lost funds through social media.
“Any social media profiles or pages claiming to represent IC3 or offering to recover lost money are fraudulent and are actively attempting to steal your personal or financial information,” the IC3 warned. “IC3 will never directly communicate with individuals via phone, email, social media, phone apps, online chat, or public forums.”
The IC3 said that any contact made with a cybercrime victim who reports an incident via its actual website will be made by an FBI employee from a local field office or other law enforcement official.
Here’s another hot tip: If you fall victim to a cybercrime or online scam, don’t post about it on social media – that’s only going to invite someone with bad intentions to seek you out. ®
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