Fraud Center

Protect yourself against theft.

Scam Scenarios

Charity Scams

Fraudsters pretend to represent a real or fake charity, most commonly after disasters or holidays, to steal donations.

Scenario: You receive a phone call or email asking for donations to help disaster victims. The caller pressures you to give payment information immediately.

What to do:

• Research the charity’s name online with the words “scam” or “fraud.” Always verify that a charity is legitimate before donating. Check their website, look for reviews, and never donate if you are feeling pressured.

• Donate through charity’s official websites and never over the phone with unknown/unexpected callers.

• Never give personal or account information to unknown organizations.

• You should also be suspicious if a charity asks you to make a donation via cash or wire transfer.

Grandparent Scam

Seniors are often the targets of “family emergency” scams. Fraudsters will impersonate a grandchild or relative, claiming they need urgent money.

Scenario: You get a call from someone and hear “Grandma, it’s me! I’m in trouble. I need bail money right away - don’t tell anyone!”

What to do:

• Hang up and call the family member or their parent using a well-known number to check this is legitimate and they are who they say they are.

• Never send money, gift cards or any other way of sending funds without verifying the actual story and the person who is reaching out.

Lottery or Prize Scam

Have you received a letter claiming you’ve won a lottery, sweepstakes, or prize draw — but are being asked to pay a “processing fee” or taxes upfront to claim it? Don’t be fooled. Scammers may try to get you to pay an upfront free or taxes before receiving the “prize,” or they may ask for your account information - that way they can “deposit the money.”

Scenario: You receive an email that says, “Congratulations! You’ve won $1 million! Just pay a $500 processing fee to claim it.”

REMEMBER: Legitimate lotteries never ask winners to pay to receive their prize.

What to Do:

• Remember: if you didn’t enter, you can’t win.

• Don’t send money or share personal and account information.

• If a check was included, don’t deposit it — shred it (it’s fake!).

• Report it to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Working From Home Scam

Do you ever go online searching for work and find ads for “Work From Home” jobs, sometimes seeming to be too good to be true? Fake job offers promise big earnings for little work, often asking for upfront fees or personal data.

Scenario: You see a job posting for “Data Entry - Earn $3,000/week” that asks you to pay for training materials.

What to do:

• Research the company to verify the company is legitimate. Check their website (see if it is official) and look for reviews. Ask around to see if anybody else has heard of the job and the company.

• Never pay money to start a job.

• Be cautious if the hiring process skips interviews.

Imposter or Government Imposter Scam

This is when a scammer pretends to be someone else, such as a government official (from the IRS, Social Security, or other agencies), police officer, credit union or bank employee, friend, or family member - with the intention of obtaining your money or personal information.

Scenario: You get a call saying your Social Security Number is suspended and you must pay to reactivate it.

Remember: Government agencies will not call or threaten you over the phone.

What to do:

• Hang up and contact the agency directly using an official number.

• Do not give any personal or account information over the phone.

Check scam

Alternating, forging, or creating fake checks to steal money from you.

Scenario: You sell something online, the buyer send a check and say they “accidentally” wrote the check for too much and asks you to refund the difference.

What to do:

• If you are selling something, do not accept a check for more than the requested amount.

• Never send money back for an “overpayment” or at least before a check is fully cleared.

• If you deposit checks directly at your credit union or bank, wait for them to clear before using funds.

• Remember: Fake checks can take weeks to be detected before they could bounce and be rejected.

Romance scam

These are deceptive schemes where scammers create fake online dating profiles, pretending to be potential romantic partners, to exploit individuals looking for love or companionship. After building emotional connections with their victims over time, they gain their trust and affection. Once that trust is established, they start asking for money to “visit you” or to “cover an emergency.”

Scenario #1: Someone you’ve been chatting with online says they need money for a medical emergency overseas.

Scenario #2: You have been chatting with someone online for a while, but they live in a different country and you haven’t been able to see each other yet. They say they want to visit you and have no money for the trip and ask if you would lend them money to see you.

What to do:

• Never send money to someone you have not met in person.

• Watch for fast declarations of love or constant requests for help.

• Be wary if someone avoids meeting in person or video chatting.

Debt Settlement or relief scam

Scammers will promise to negotiate with creditors on your behalf to settle your debts for a fraction of the amount owed or even wipe the debt out entirely. They charge an upfront fee but fail to deliver on their promise, leaving you in a worse financial situation and without any real debt relief.

Scenario: A caller claims they can settle your credit card debt for half the amount, but you must pay today.

What to do:

• Do not pay upfront fees to any company that guarantees they can settle or eliminate your debts.

• Only work with legitimate agencies you know and trust.

• If you do not know the company the agent is claiming to be calling from, hang up. Check their website for legitimacy and look for reviews. Research the company name with words like “scam” or “fraud.”

• Avoid companies that demand payment before services.

Tech Support Scam

Fraudsters will pretend to be tech support, claiming your computer or device is infected with a virus and charging you for “fixing” your tech issues.

Scenario: A pop-up says, “Warning! Your computer is infected! Call this number immediately.”

What to do:

• Never call numbers from these pop-ups or click on any links.

• Close the browser and run a trusted antivirus scan.

• Only seek technical help from official sources.

• Do not give remote access to anyone claiming to be from tech support if you do not know who they are.

• If you are concerned, bring your computer to a trusted company that will check your computer for any viruses.

Email and Text Scams (Phishing/Smishing)

Fraudsters send messages with fake links to steal personal or account information.

Scenario: You get a text that says, “Your credit union account is locked - click here to unlock it.”

What to do:

• Do not click links or download attachments.

• Contact your credit union using the number on your statement or website.

Phone Number Spoofing

Scammers disguise their phone number to look like a local or trusted business.

Scenario: Your caller ID says it’s your credit union, but the caller asks for your account number, card number and PIN.

What to do:

• Hang up and call your credit union directly using a known number.

• Never give account or personal information to unsolicited callers.