Cybersecurity experts warn that scammers are using fear and urgency to trick people into handing over money and personal information
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Scammers are increasingly posing as FBI agents, using fear and urgency to pressure people into sending money or sharing sensitive information
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Losses from government impersonation have surged, with reports doubling year over year and costing victims hundreds of millions of dollars
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Red flags include unsolicited contact, urgent legal threats, demands for payment, and requests for secrecy and real law enforcement will never ask for money this way
Getting a call from the FBI would rattle just about anyone and scammers are counting on that reaction.
A growing number of fraudsters are posing as federal agents, reaching out by phone, email, or text with alarming claims that pressure people to act fast. Whether its a supposed criminal investigation or a warning about financial trouble, the goal is the same: create panic and push victims into making quick decisions they might not otherwise make.
ConsumerAffairs spoke with Silviu Stahie, a security analyst at Bitdefender, who explained that these are becoming more convincing by the day.
Increase in FBI impersonation
Stahie explained that the FBIs Internet Crime Complaint Centerreportedreceiving more than 1 million complaints in 2025, and government impersonationalone accounted for over 32,000 complaints andnearly $800 millionin losses.
If we look at 2024, with $400 million in losses from this type ofscam, we can easily see a 100% increase, Stahie said. Unfortunately, thisshowsthatthescamworks, and wecanexpectan increase in the coming years as attacks become more sophisticated.
Scammers are gathering data
For these types of , criminals rarely use a singleinformation source.
They gather data from data breaches, publicly available social media profiles, scraped profiles, and recycled information frompreviousthat worked, Stahie explained. In fact, once someone becomes a victim, theres a good chance that attackers will try again at a later date.
Peopledontrealize just how much personal information about themselves is out there. And, for the most part, thatinformation is shared voluntarily on social media, forums, and many other channels. Even iftheyvebeen careful not to share anything about their private life, the online services people use daily can get compromised.
Know what to look for
Stahie said that despite the increase in sophistication, thesefollow the same pattern. Here are some red flags to look for:
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These usually begin with unsolicited contact and quickly escalate into a situation involving urgency or legal threats.
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Criminals will say that the victims are part of an investigation, have missed a legal obligation, or need to act urgently to avoid consequences.
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The urgency is the first pivot in theattack, ascyber criminalsneed the victims to believe they must act NOW.
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The financial request itself is another big red flag. Any demand for money,especially forwire transfers, gift cards, or cryptocurrency, should raise suspicionimmediately.
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Another thing to look for: the pressure for secrecy, asattackersoften warn victims that they cant contact anyone else.
The clearest rule we can follow is simple: no law enforcement agency will ever ask for money or sensitive financial information over the phone or via unsolicited messages, Stahie said.
Healthy skepticism can help
With much of our lives existing digitally, Stahie says that healthy skepticism can be one of the best ways to protect ourselves.
Healthy skepticism is the first line of defense, Stahie said. Any unexpected communication that involves urgency, authority, or financial requests should be treated with the same measure. Close any communication,verify the claims independentlyandcontactlaw enforcement.
Reducing your digital footprint is also vital. The less publicly available personal information, the harder it becomes for scammers to build convincing narratives. On the technical side, tools that filter or block suspicious calls can significantly reduce exposure to these attacks.Freeonlinetools such asReverse Phone Number Lookupscansecurity databases to verify callers anddetermineif a call is safe, spam, or a potentialscam.
Posted: 2026-04-20 18:13:52
