Scam calls claiming to be from the Social Security office have skyrocketed this year

Fraudsters pretending to be agents from the Social Security Administration has skyrocketed this year, a new study has found.

This rising scam topped the long-running fake IRS calls that were the number one complaint among Americans for the past three years.

Experts warn these criminals will use strong-armed tactics during calls, which include threatening to arrest victims, suspending their bank accounts or garnishing benefits if they are not given what they want.

A study conducted by BeenVerified, a background check company, analyzed spam complaints throughout the US from January 2016 through July 2019.

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Fraudsters pretending to be agents from the Social Security Administration has skyrocketed over the first six months of this year, a new study has found

Justin Lavelle, a spokesperson with BeenVerified, said: ‘The Spam Complaint Monitor is a canary in the coal mine showing broad spam and robocall topic trends.’

‘As the data is self-reported, the total numbers of complaints related to each of these spam call topics are almost certainly higher.’

The team found that 10 percent of spam and robocalls came from people claiming to work for the Social Security Officer.

This is a more than 23-fold increase in Social Security scam complaints compared to the first half of 2018.

A study conducted by BeenVerified , a background check company, analyzed spam complaints throughout the US from January 2016 through July 2019

This rising scam has topped the long-running fake IRS calls that were the number one complaint among Americans for the past three years

It was also discovered that not all scammers are evil – some like to entice their victims with free goods and services.

Robocalls that claim to be from credit card and mortgage companies will offer people anything from free vacations to fee gift cards to government grants, as long as they hand over their information or a certain amount of money.

‘Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is,’ Lavelle said.

But if the caller says they represent the Social Security Administration or IRS and they’re looking to ‘verify’ personal information, you’d do well to hang up—or potentially invite criminals into your life.

BeenVerified found more than 76,000 Social Security scam calls were reported to the Federal Trade Commission in the 12-month period ending in March 2019.

Less than 3.5 percent of Social Security scam complaints to the FTC resulted in lost cash, as these calls are focused on gathering people’s personal information. The median reported loss was $1,500 in 2018, more than four times higher than losses from all other frauds

These scam calls resulted in losses totaling $19 million. 

However, losses related to IRS scams peaked at $17 million for the 12 months ending in September 2016, the FTC reported.

Less than 3.5 percent of Social Security scam complaints to the FTC resulted in lost cash, as these calls are focused on gathering people’s personal information. 

The median reported loss was $1,500 in 2018, more than four times higher than losses from all other frauds, the FTC reported. ‘

It’s clear from FTC and our data that the Social Security scam has greater potential for losses than previous IRS scams,’ Lavelle said.

WHY DID THE GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN LEAD TO A RISE IN ROBOCALLS? 

Many federal agencies, including the FTC and FCC, were closed during the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. 

The shutdown lasted between December 22nd and January 25th – a total of 35 days. 

During that time, users saw a spike in robocalls, as scammers tried to cash in on the government shutdown. 

Users who attempted to register with the Federal Trade Commission’s Do Not Call Registry were unable to as a result of the shutdown. 

U.S. residents saw a sharp increase in robocalls during the U.S. government shutdown, as scammers tried to cash in on the fact that many regulatory agencies were closed

The Do Not Call Registry is a database of phone numbers who do not want to be contacted by telemarketers. 

The website came back online once the shutdown ended, but during the time that the FTC and FCC were closed, their websites were down as well. 

It meant that consumers couldn’t receive warnings about robocall scams and the offices couldn’t record consumer complaints, according to the Washington Post. 

Nomorobo, a call blocking service, saw a ‘severe’ rise in the number of consumer complaints during the shutdown. 

One frightening scam in particular warned users in a voicemail that the ‘recent government shutdown is affecting [their] standing with the IRS.’