Government warns Americans about lucrative Amazon Scam
The Federal Trade Commission announced its recent focus on helping Americans who lost millions of dollars through Amazon Scams.
From July 2020 through June 2021, about one in three people who reported a business impersonator to the FTC said the scammer claimed to be calling from Amazon.
In that one-year period, reports about Amazon impersonators increased more than fivefold. About 96,000 people reported being targeted, and nearly 6,000 said they lost money.
Reported losses topped more than $27 million with the reported median individual loss totaling about $1,000.
Data suggests that Amazon impersonation scams may be disproportionately harming older adults. Over the past year, people aged 60 and up were over four times more likely to report losing money to an Amazon impersonator.
Officials say the median reported loss was $1,500, compared to $814 for those under age 60.
Many of these scams involve the victim paying out the scammer with pre-paid gift cards or cryptocurrency like Bitcoin.
The FTC says no major corporation like Apple, Amazon, or Microsoft will ever ask for payment in these forms.
Click here to learn more about how to prevent elders against scams.
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