Scams

"The number of reported scam attempts reached levels we haven't seen in more than a decade," an IRS official said.

Hunter VanPelt, also known as Ellen Corkrum, received over $6 million out of roughly $7.9 million in fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program loans.

Self-proclaimed "Doctor of Naturopathy" Howard L. Young told his victims he had cured himself of cancer using ineffective "holistic" methods like exercise, nutritional supplements and acupuncture.

The man and his accomplices falsely identified themselves as attorneys, court officials and federal agents while extorting millions of dollars from thousands of immigrants.

Acting U.S. Attorney Stephanie Hinds said that scammer Roger Karlsson "will have plenty of time to think about the harm he has caused" after being sentenced for carrying out the "frighteningly callous scheme."

"These criminals are psychological manipulators who are very good at what they do," said Chesterton police Sgt. Dave Virijevich.

Between October 2020 and May 2021, almost 7,000 people in the U.S. lost $80 million to cryptocurrency scammers.

A woman in Texas lost $5K after trying to quickly purchase a home for herself and her boyfriend when it turned out to be a scam.

The scam, involving a fake BBC news article, is not the only one to have cheated people out of money recently.

The man used an illegal method called SIM-swapping to impersonate his victims and then hack into their phones and personal account.

The indictment for selling bleach as a "miracle" cure for COVID-19 and other illnesses comes exactly one year after former President Donald Trump suggested injecting "disinfectant" as a treatment for the virus.

Americans are receiving shady emails and text messages promising free iPads and cash prizes for filling out a post-vaccine survey.

Among the common scams are fake checks, which "can take weeks to be discovered and untangled," the Federal Trade Commission warns.

The debit cards arrive in plain white envelopes with a Treasury Department seal. The cards bear a Visa logo on the front and have been issued by MetaBank, which is named on the back.

Patrice Runner, 54, allegedly scammed about $180 million from American victims over 20 years by sending letters purporting to be from two famous French psychics.

"We have evidence that completely discredits mr trump as a president proving his criminal involvement and cooperation with foreign actors manipulating the 2020 elections," the hacked site said.

By mid-June the FBI's cybercrime division received more complaints of cyber threats than it received in all of 2019.

Jay Nixon, a lawyer and former two-term Democratic governor of Missouri, is defending Jim Bakker's "religious freedom" after the televangelist was sued by the state for allegedly promoting a fake coronavirus cure.

Americans in all 50 states have reported more than $23 million in losses due to coronavirus scams, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

Rodney L. Stevenson II faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted on wire fraud charges for allegedly selling "Anti-Viral N95" masks at inflated prices online, then never delivering them.

The scam is also just one of many that have proliferated during the epidemic, preying on people's financial and health fears.

"Fake stimulus check scams could be very successful considering the financial chaos coronavirus has unleashed on families worldwide," one top malware researcher told Newsweek.

Scammers are using the COVID-19 pandemic to take advantage of Americans.

Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones is promoting his "Superblue" toothpaste as a remedy against coronavirus, despite health experts insisting that the key ingredient is neither safe nor effective against any ailment.

A report from Quartz has revealed that seniors are allegedly being fleeced of thousands of dollars, which they traded for silver coins worth a quarter of what they paid.

A popular third-party genetic genealogy database is vulnerable to security risks that include impersonation of relatives, a study found.

Six-year-old Darci Jackson passed away of cancer last year, but her picture and name have been attached to an unauthorized GoFundMe account. Now her parents are fighting back against the "sick" scammers who tried to defaud others in their daughter's name.

Despite the defendant's ingenuity in implementing the fraud, he himself fell prey to another financial scam, the Justice Department said.

The scammers targeted the elderly and scammed them out of nearly $40 million dollars.

In the past, destructive natural disasters have been exploited by scammers. Experts say it is vital to be aware of what to look out for.