Recovery Scams Overview
A "Recovery Scam" is a fraudulent scheme that targets individuals who have already fallen victim to another scam. These scammers prey on the desperation of victims who are hoping to recoup their losses.
It might be a sad truth, but if you've been a victim of an internet scam, it's nearly impossible to recovery anything you've provided. ScamHub does NOT offer recovery services to scam victims.
According to a recent report from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), more than $10 Billion dollars was stolen from Americans via fraudulent means in 2023 alone. It may surprise you to know that Social Media represented a whopping $1.4 Billion dollars in that figure.
This number proves that, not only do scammers have successful methods to exploit their victims, but also just how easy it is to get away with it.
How Recovery Scams Work
Scammers target their victims by phone, email, or social media and usually claim to be law enforcement, government officials, financial experts, professional hackers, or know someone who is a professional hacker.
Usually the scammer will promise to recover the victim's funds, cryptocurrency, physical items, or personal information. In some rare cases, the scammer may even provide evidence that they can "help" to create a facade of trustworthiness. The caveat to this however, is that the victim will need to pay upfront fees for legal, administrative, or hacking services.
Once the victim agrees, the scammer will then ask for sensitive information such as bank account details, a social security number, or credit card information under the guise of aiding in the recovery process. After the victim pays for the recovery service, and provides the scammer with their sensitive personal information, the scammer disappears into the void of the internet.
This leaves the victim with no recovery of their original loss and now they're out the additional funds they paid the scammer for the recovery service. Additionally, the victim's personal information can also be used for future fraudulent activities or sold on the dark web.
Recovery Scam Takeaways
Nearly every recovery service that guarantees reclamation of the funds you've lost, is also a scam. The most you can usually do as a scam victim is to call your bank directly and dispute the charge and/or cancel your credit card. It's crucial to remember that if something sounds to good to be true, it probably is. Scam victims should be wary of anyone contacting them out of the blue offering to recover lost funds.
As a final reminder, ScamHub does NOT offer recovery services for scam victims.
