There are virtually no avenues a scammer won’t take to con people out of money or commit fraud. If you are an active social media user you probably have seen a variety of posts claiming you can make easy money working from home or investing in an assortment of opportunities. Money flipping is one of the many tactics crooks use to lure victims into a get-rich-quick scam. As enticing as the offers may seem, there is no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. If you’re looking to cash in on a money flipping opportunity, you’ll discover the ruse is a flop.
You can find similar posts to the one above all over social media websites such as Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, claiming you can make a hefty amount of cash in less than an hour with a little help. They often post photos of themselves and other “investors” with handfuls of cash and testimonials about how easy it is to make a profit, along with a number to contact them directly for details. The promotions are made to appeal to virtually anyone looking to make money to pay bills, pay mortgage/rent, or even to just go shopping.
When you get in contact with the con artist, you’re told that if you simply load as little as $100 onto a prepaid debit card and provide them with the card number and pin, they have the ability to turn that amount into a huge profit. Generally for every $100 invested you will receive $1,000. They often pose as employees of Western Union or MoneyGram and may even claim to have exclusive software that allows them to increase the balance of any amount uploaded to the card. In other instances they may ask that you send the money by wire transfer with a promise to send a tracking number within 30 minutes when funds are available. The entire transaction is made to appear as a fast and easy guaranteed transaction, but in reality it is an outright scam.
Victims who fall for these tricks never see their promised return and the money deposited on the card is likely never to be seen again. In many cases, the perpetrators block the person on social media and phones. In other instances, as with the consumer that filed a complaint with Business Consumer Alliance (“BCA”), they go after the victim for more money, claiming the transaction didn’t go through and asking for more money to complete the transaction. This complainant lost $2,000 to the scam and never received anything but requests for more money.
If you’re contacted with a similar opportunity or are tempted to “invest” in a money flipping scheme, BCA suggests that you think twice. As the clich? goes, if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is. Anyone promising loads of cash for a small investment is usually a scammer looking to defraud you. It’s best to find other means to supplement your income, such as part-time employment or selling items you own. Some other useful tips to avoid getting scammed are:
- Always check out an offer first with BCA.
- Never give your personal and financial information to anyone unless you have researched them and know how the information will be used.
- Under no circumstances should you ever give out your PIN.
- Avoid wiring money or using reloadable prepaid cards to send money to anyone you do not know, to make a purchase, or to take advantage of a business opportunity. This is not a secure way to transact business and any money sent to a scam will be lost.
File a complaint if you suspect that you have been a victim of a scam or have a problem with a business.
About Business Consumer Alliance
Business Consumer Alliance (BCA) is a non-profit company that started in 1928. The broad purpose of BCA is to promote business self-regulation. BCA's mission is achieved by assisting consumers in resolving complaints with businesses and using that complaint information, along with other relevant information such as customer reviews, to forecast business reliability. With community support, BCA can identify trustworthy and ethical businesses and warn the public to avoid unscrupulous businesses whose purpose is to defraud the marketplace. BCA also helps businesses promote themselves by providing services and tools to protect their business and reach out to their customers. BCA obtains its funding from member businesses who support the mission and purpose of the organization and who agree to abide by high standards of ethical business practices.