News
Amazon is the most impersonated company in the US
July 2022 by StockApps.com
Amazon is quickly turning into a scammer’s paradise. That’s according to a recent StockApps data presentation. The site’s analysis shows that a third of impersonation cases occurring between July 2020 and June 2021 had the fraudster claiming to be an Amazon employee.
StockApps’ financial lead Edith Reads has been analyzing that data. Here she shares her thoughts on the development:
"The explosive growth of online shopping has created loopholes for fraudsters to exploit unwitting customers, and Amazon seems to be their platform of choice. As a result, nearly 100K American shoppers have encountered Amazon scammers. Six thousand of these ended up losing over $27M. These figures call for vigilance while transacting online."
How do Amazon scammers dupe you of your money?
A typical scam activity involves the scammer reaching you via messages claiming to have encountered some "suspicious activities" or "unauthorized transactions" from your account. The impostor then dupes you into giving them remote access to your PC or phone to "fix the problem." and process your refund.
Next, you’ll realize that your account has a bigger balance than before. The scammer will then ask you to return the difference.
Some scammers have made the "overpayment" so "real" by accessing your online banking accounts. They then move funds from, say, savings to checking accounts. A large checking account balance convinces you that you’ve received a refund which isn’t the case.
Another scheme involves sending Amazon users texts indicating they won a raffle gift. The text requires them to click a link to enable them to claim the prize. The "winners" must enter their card details to pay for shipping attracting charges they didn’t authorize.
Senior citizens are at more risk
FTC data shows older adults are more susceptible to these scams. Persons aged sixty and over were more than four times more likely to lose money to an Amazon scammer than their younger counterparts. Additionally, they lost more money, with the median loss for this group standing at $1,500. In contrast, the median loss for those under sixty was $814.
