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Beware of this Venmo Scam!

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Scammers, unfortunately, are a part of our everyday lives. Now they have a new scam on Venmo. Hi, I’m Hunter Brockway, founder of Boca Retirement Strategies, here to guide you to successful stress-free retirement while spending more and avoiding being killed in taxes. I’m compelled to take the time to warn you today about a new scam involving Venmo and similar instant electronic payment platforms. How this works is the scammers will communicate with you and say they accidentally just sent you, Jim, $500 instead of a different Jim, and you could please send it back. If you’ve used these payment platforms before, you know that this is a possible mistake. So you log in, check your app, sure enough, $500 was sent to you. Well, you’re a decent, good-natured human being, the money isn’t yours, so you send it back. How this works is the scammer hacks a third party’s account. The scammer sends you money from an innocent bank account or stolen credit card and is counting on you to send the money back.

The scammer knows they are up against the clock before the other person or their financial institution notices the fraudulent activity. They may persuade you to quickly send the money because they need to buy insulin or pay rent or whatever terrible lie they sell you. Once you send the money from your own account, the hacker takes the money and runs. Shortly after, the original $500 that was sent to you becomes disputed as a fraudulent charge. You owe the $500 that was originally sent to you, and you’re forever out the $500. So take action. Number 1. Always, and unfortunately I hate to say this, but always view communication with unknown sources or communication you weren’t expecting with a lens of suspicion. If anyone is ever rushing you regarding a financial transaction or decision, question it. If you are a client of ours, don’t hesitate to reach out and get our opinion on the matter. We are your 411 and 911 for all things financial.

2. If a payment was truly made in error, Venmo has the capability to reverse it. Work with Venmo, not the other person. 3. Stay up to date by subscribing to our YouTube channel. 4. A pro tip. When sending someone money for the first time on one of these platforms, send them $1. Have them confirm with you that they received the $1, then you can send the rest of the money. This way, you yourself don’t accidentally send the wrong person your hard-earned dollars. I’m Hunter Brockway, founder of Boca Retirement Strategies. If you ever have any financial questions, feel free to reach out at contact at BocaRetirement.com. Enjoy your successful retirement and thank you for watching. Bye.

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