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When you talk with friends and family over the holidays, you may hear about new puppies, old sports rivalries, and dreams of the next vacation. As you join the conversation, why not share some ideas to protect the people you care about from scams? Read these tips from the FTC’s Pass it On campaign for ideas, and then tell people where to find them.

If your uncle mentions the unwanted calls he’s getting from “Social Security,” explain that the calls are from scammers posing as government officials. He can’t rely on caller ID, because scammers use technology to fake the numbers they’re calling from. Remind him to hang up when he gets an unwanted call, and let him know there are options for blocking calls, whether he uses a mobile phone, landline and or gets phone service over the internet.

While you’re trading ideas with the cousins about websites for shopping, socializing, and take-out meals, remind them to protect their identity on those new accounts. That means using strong passwords and limiting the information they share. They can also monitor their credit with a free credit report each week. The three national credit-reporting agencies are providing free weekly reports at AnnualCreditReport.com through December 2023

If your just-retired friend starts chatting about the great work-at-home opportunity she found online, ask if she has to pay up front for the opportunity. Ads that offer to help you start an online business — after you buy a training system — are often scams. People who buy the “systems” often get pressure to pay more for extra services, but don’t get anything that really helps them start a business or make money.

Thank you for helping the FTC share information and help people spot and avoid scams. You can subscribe to our blog to learn about the latest scams. And if you or someone you know sees a fraud, scam, or bad business practice, please report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Happy holidays.

Updated September 23, 2022 to reflect the extension of free weekly credit reports through December 2023.

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The purpose of this blog and its comments section is to inform readers about Federal Trade Commission activity, and share information to help them avoid, report, and recover from fraud, scams, and bad business practices. Your thoughts, ideas, and concerns are welcome, and we encourage comments. But keep in mind, this is a moderated blog. We review all comments before they are posted, and we won’t post comments that don’t comply with our commenting policy. We expect commenters to treat each other and the blog writers with respect.

  • We won’t post off-topic comments, repeated identical comments, or comments that include sales pitches or promotions.
  • We won’t post comments that include vulgar messages, personal attacks by name, or offensive terms that target specific people or groups.
  • We won’t post threats, defamatory statements, or suggestions or encouragement of illegal activity.
  • We won’t post comments that include personal information, like Social Security numbers, account numbers, home addresses, and email addresses. To file a detailed report about a scam, go to ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

We don't edit comments to remove objectionable content, so please ensure that your comment contains none of the above. The comments posted on this blog become part of the public domain. To protect your privacy and the privacy of other people, please do not include personal information. Opinions in comments that appear in this blog belong to the individuals who expressed them. They do not belong to or represent views of the Federal Trade Commission.

Edna B Gordon
November 24, 2020
Be sure to read your Explanation of Benefits from your health care insurance provider carefully. If you don't recognize a doctor's name or he was not your doctor, call your insurance company and report the error immediately. I found one last week! Medicare paid him $375 and he was not my doctor! He hung around the hospital to get patients info. BEWARE!!