According to a recent report, nearly half of all phone calls will come from scammers by next year.
The latest scheme involves fraudsters claiming to be from the Social Security Administration.
“The scams we’ve been seeing lately are that your Social Security number has been deactivated. The Social Security Administration does not deactivate accounts,” said Jennifer Walker, Assistant Inspector General for Investigations with the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General.
They’re robocalls in some cases, providing a phony call-back number or website to steal your personal and financial information.
Others are human callers, using a fake name and government affiliation to ask for your Social Security number, address or date of birth.
“It is on very, very rare occasions that someone from the Social Security Administration would call an individual and ask for this sort of information,” Walker said.
Those consumers would likely be expecting the call and have ongoing business with the SSA.
If you have questions about any communication that claims to be from the Social Security Administration or the Office of the Inspector General call 1-800-269-0271.
For more information about these scams or to fill out a fraud report online, click here.
