Online scammers often try to trick victims into wiring them cash. But now some are manipulating users into liquidating their cash assets into gold bars.
On Monday, the FBI issued a warning about the tactic, which has largely ensnared senior citizens. “From May to December 2023, the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) saw an uptick in this activity with aggregated losses of over $55 million,” the alert said.
The scam works by impersonating US government officials or customer support at a financial or technology company. While pretending to be someone of authority, the fraudsters will reach out to potential targets, claiming that their financial accounts were hacked.
The culprits will then urge the victim to liquidate their financial assets to purchase gold, silver, or other precious metals. In some cases, the scammers will even send instructions on how to wire the funds to a metal dealer, who’ll then ship the gold to the victims’ homes.
“Once victims obtain the cash and/or precious metals, the scammers send couriers to retrieve the items at victims’ homes or public locations,” the FBI added. “Scammers tell victims they will safeguard the assets in a protected account on behalf of the victims. In reality, victims never hear back from the scammers and lose all their money.”
The scheme may be obvious to readers. But these online scams continue to steal millions from unsuspecting users, who are often led to believe they’re interacting with a government or banking official. It’s not clear how the fraudsters are reaching out to victims, but in the warning, the FBI urged the public to avoid opening unsolicited pop-ups, emails, and text messages.
“The US Government and legitimate businesses will never request you purchase gold or other precious metals,” the FBI added. “Never disclose your home address or agree to meet with unknown individuals to deliver cash or precious metals.”
The FBI also encourages victims to report the crime at the agency’s Internet Complaint Center.