A suspicious phone call: is it a scam?

Scammers call pretending to be the government, your bank, a utility, or even your grandchild. Here’s how to tell, what to do right now, and how to get fewer of these calls.

Is this a scam? Quick signs

Social Security’s Inspector General says scams all work the same way. Scammers:

• Pretend to be from an agency or company you know to gain your trust.
• Say there’s a problem or a prize.
• Pressure you to act immediately. They may threaten arrest, a lawsuit, or cutting off your benefits or power.
• Tell you to pay in a specific way.

Other red flags from Social Security’s Inspector General: the caller demands secrecy, says they’ll transfer you to “law enforcement,” tells you to move your money to a “protected” account, or texts you pictures of badges or official-looking papers.

Do this right now

1. Hang up. You don’t need to be polite. If a recording tells you to press a button to stop calls, just hang up. The FCC says scammers use that trick to find people to target.
2. Don’t give any information. Not your Social Security number, Medicare number, bank account, or a code sent to your phone.
3. Don’t pay. Never pay by gift card, wire, crypto, payment app, or cash because a caller told you to.
4. Check it yourself. Call the agency or company using a number you find yourself: on your bill, the back of your card, or the agency’s official .gov website. Don’t use the number the caller gave you, or a number from a text or email.
5. Talk to someone you trust before you do anything else, especially if the caller said to keep it secret.
6. Report it (see how to report).

Common fake callers, and what the real ones say

What agencies say they will never do

• IRS: will never ask you to pay with a prepaid card or a store or online gift card. A social media direct message is never from the IRS. It normally contacts you first by mail.
• Social Security: will never ask for sensitive or personal information through social media, email, or text message.
• Medicare: will never call you uninvited and ask you to give personal or private information.
• Federal law enforcement and federal employees will never send photos of credentials or badges to demand any kind of payment (Social Security’s Inspector General).
• The FTC will never threaten you, say you must transfer your money to “protect it,” or tell you to withdraw cash or buy gold and give it to someone.
• Any government agency: the FTC says no government agency is going to call you out of the blue and ask for sensitive information like your Social Security number, and real law enforcement and federal agencies won’t call and threaten you.
• Any real business or government agency: the FTC says none will ever tell you to buy a gift card to pay them.

Caller ID can lie

The FCC calls it spoofing: scammers fake the information that shows up on your caller ID. They often make it look like a local number, or like a company or government agency you trust. The FTC says that even if a call looks like it’s from Social Security or a local number, it could be a scammer calling from anywhere in the world.

The FCC’s advice: don’t answer calls from unknown numbers. If you do answer one, hang up right away. Don’t answer questions, especially ones that can be answered “yes” or “no.”

If you already paid or gave information

Block robocalls and scam calls

The FTC says scammers don’t care if you’re on the Do Not Call Registry, so call blocking is your best defense. The FTC notes call blocking might block some calls you want, so save family, doctors, and pharmacies in your contacts.

1. Ask your phone company

Check your phone company’s website or call customer service and ask what call-blocking or call-labeling services it offers. The FTC says some are free and others charge a fee. The FCC keeps a list of phone companies’ call-blocking resources.

2. On an iPhone

Apple Support says: go to Settings, tap Apps, then Phone. Scroll to Screen Unknown Callers and choose Silence (calls from numbers not in your contacts are silenced and go to voicemail) or Ask Reason for Calling (the caller is asked why they’re calling before your phone rings). In the same place, under Call Filtering, you can turn on the spam filter. Apple notes that if you call emergency services, call screening turns off for 24 hours. Menus may look different on older iPhone software.

3. On an Android phone

Google Support says that on Pixel phones in the U.S. you can use Call Screen: open the Phone app, tap More, then Settings, then Spam and Call Screen (or Call Screen), and choose which calls to screen, such as spam, possibly faked numbers, and first-time callers. Google says manual Call Screen is also available on selected other Android phones in the U.S. Other Android brands have their own settings; check the maker’s help pages or ask your phone company.

4. Home phones

The FTC says traditional landlines and internet home phones (VoIP) have their own call-blocking options. Ask your phone company what it offers.

The National Do Not Call Registry: what it does and doesn’t do

• It’s free. Register at DoNotCall.gov or call 1-888-382-1222 (TTY 1-866-290-4236) from the phone you want to register. Cell phones can be registered.
• It stops sales calls from real companies that follow the law. It can take up to 31 days for those calls to stop. Your registration never expires.
• It does not block calls, and it won’t stop scammers who are already breaking the law.
• Some calls are still allowed, such as political calls, charities, debt collectors, purely informational calls, and surveys, as long as they don’t include a sales pitch.
• If a recorded sales call reaches you and you never gave that company written permission, the FTC says the call is illegal and probably a scam.

How to report a scam call

• FTC: ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
• Unwanted sales calls and robocalls: DoNotCall.gov.
• Caller ID spoofing: the FCC says you can file a complaint with the FCC at consumercomplaints.fcc.gov.
• Social Security-related scams: Social Security’s Inspector General at oig.ssa.gov/report.
• Medicare-related calls: 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).
• IRS-related contacts: the IRS page How to know it’s the IRS links to how to report a suspicious contact.
• Need help in another language? Social Security’s Inspector General says you can call the FTC at (877) 382-4357 and press 3 to speak to an interpreter.