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As a consumer or small business owner, it’s important to understand how fraud and scams are defined because there may be differences in the protections offered by your bank or credit union.
A basic way to differentiate fraud and scams is by whether the transaction is authorized or unauthorized. Keep reading to see examples and learn more about the differences between fraud and scams.
If someone gained access to your bank account and made a payment without your permission and you weren’t involved in the transaction in any way, this is typically considered fraud because it was unauthorized activity. If someone gained access to your account and stole money or sent it without your permission, this could be defined as fraud.
Immediately report suspicious or unauthorized activity to your financial institution. If you did NOT authorize a payment, you may be able to get your money back.
Someone found your credit card and started making purchases without your permission.
Immediately report suspected unauthorized activity to your financial institution.
Because you did not authorize a payment, you are typically able to get your money back.
If you were knowingly involved in the transaction and you gave the “ok” to authorize a payment, this is typically defined as a scam. Even if you were tricked or persuaded into authorizing the payment for goods or services someone said they were going to provide but they didn’t fulfill, you may not be able to get your money back because you technically authorized it. A few types of scams reported involve purchasing tickets, buying puppies, but it’s a good idea to know about other types common of scams.
You sent someone money to pay for concert tickets but never received them.
Contact your financial institution if you think you’ve been scammed.
Because you authorized the payment, you may not be able to get your money back.
Digital payments continue to grow across the U.S. And with issues like identity theft and other cybercrimes on the rise, it’s important to know what you can do to help protect yourself.
Scammers can target you or your personal information online before you see anything suspicious. It’s a good idea to consider proactive ways to help protect your information.
Change your security settings to enable multifactor authentication — which is a second step to securely verify who you are, like a text with a code — for any accounts or services you use that support it. For example, social media sites, online and mobile banking, credit cards, utilities and more.
Many banks and credit unions warn of suspicious activity on your account. Sign up for account alerts and contact your bank or credit union immediately if you suspect unauthorized activity.
Scammers can spoof calls and send emails that look like they are from your bank. Beware of clicking through links in emails, and never provide any information over the phone if someone stating they’re from your bank calls you. Hang up and call your bank at the phone number listed on the back of your bank-issued debit card or on the bank’s official website to verify it’s a legitimate communication.
Avoid sharing your location, home address, phone number and other personal information across social media. Check your settings and permissions on each social platform, and activate any additional security features available, like two-factor authentication (2FA). Also, don’t accept friend/connection requests from people you don’t know.
Don’t use the same password for every site. Online password managers will simply and securely store your passwords and will save you from having to remember dozens of them. And it goes without saying, but don’t share your passwords with anyone!
Using the free public Wi-Fi at your favorite neighborhood coffee shop may save you some gigabytes on your data plan, but it can come with risks. If you do log in to a public network, make sure you don’t log into any sites that contain sensitive personal information, like mobile online banking sites.
Scroll through the topics below to explore quick videos on how to spot common tactics.
That amazing last-minute deal on tickets might be too good to be true after all... learn how to help identify potential ticket scams.
Looking for a job? Learn tips to help spot suspicious job posts, business imposters, and fake recruiters.
If you're looking for love, learn how to keep an eye out for romance scammers who create fake profiles to gain your trust.
Know what red flags to pay attention to when browsing online marketplaces and learn how to help avoid falling for a scam.