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Never Transfer Your Money to "Protect It" - It's a Scam

Published: October 19, 2024

Never Transfer Your Money to "Protect It" - It's a Scam

People are losing significant amounts of money to scammers running complex schemes. These scams often involve someone claiming they’ve noticed fraudulent or criminal activity on one of your accounts. The scammer then offers to “help” you protect your money, sometimes requesting that you share verification codes, and almost always insisting that you move your money from your bank, investment, or retirement account. Every part of this is a scam.

To help protect yourself and others, follow and share this advice to stop scammers in their tracks:

Never Move or Transfer Your Money to “Protect” It.

No matter what the scammer says or how urgent they make it sound, your money is safe where it is. Moving it will lead to losing it, not protecting it. Anyone who claims you need to move your money to safeguard it is a scammer—plain and simple.

Never Share a Verification Code.

Verification codes are used by banks to confirm your identity in online banking. If you share this code, the scammer can use it to impersonate you. No legitimate caller — including your bank’s fraud department — will ever ask for your verification code. If they do, it's always a scam.

Stop and Verify.

If you’re concerned about potential fraud, reach out to your bank, credit union, broker, or investment advisor directly. Use the phone number listed on your account statement, not the one provided by the scammer. This ensures you’re speaking with the real company, not the scammer.

Report It.

If you receive a call like this, inform your bank or investment firm immediately, especially if you’ve moved money or shared a verification code. After that, report the scam to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

This article is for informational purposes only. Credit: Federal Trade Commission (FTC)

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