FBI: Scammers fooling victims by spoofing FBI phone numbers

One of the latest scams to hit phone lines involves scammers “spoofing” or fraudulently displaying the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s real telephone number on the victim’s caller ID, according to a Tuesday news release from the FBI’s St. Louis and Kansas City divisions.

“A St. Louis County victim was scammed out of more than $100,000,” the release stated. “The scammers posed as special agents from an FBI satellite office of the FBI Kansas City Division.”

According to the release, the perpetrators said the victim’s Social Security number had been stolen and used to make purchases in the victim’s name. The scammers then instructed the victim to wire their life savings to the “FBI” for safe keeping.

“It is appalling how perpetrators will ask victims how much money they have in their life savings in order to scam them out of every penny,” special agent in charge Richard Quinn of the FBI St. Louis Division said. “But they rarely stop there. Scammers will squeeze victims dry by also maxing out their credit cards.”

Special agent in charge Timothy Langan of the FBI Kansas City Division said the scheme is an old scam with a new twist, and advised members of the public to remember the FBI will never ask or demand money for any reason.

“When someone asks for your money (especially through a wire transfer) or your personal or financial information, be suspicious and verify the legitimacy of the request,” Langan stated.

If you are a victim of a phone or an online scam, the FBI advises to immediately contact the bank and try to recall the wire transfer, then file an online complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.IC3.gov.