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Denver, Colorado - FBI Denver has raised an alarm regarding a novel scam strategy, coined as “The Phantom Hacker.” In this scheme, con artists pretend to be IT professionals from the tech, banking, or governmental sectors to exploit, usually older, individuals. The unsuspecting victims are falsely led to believe that international hackers have compromised their financial accounts.

Consequently, the scammers suggest that the victims transfer their finances to an alleged U.S. Government account for security. In truth, no hacker exists, and the scammers end up with complete control over the transferred money. The gravity of the situation is further underscored as some victims are losing their entire life savings due to this scam.

Key Points

• "The Phantom Hacker" Scam: The Procedure
• • Step 1 – Tech Support Deceit: The scam begins when a con artist, impersonating a tech support personnel, contacts the victim. This can be via a phone call, email, text, or computer pop-up, instructing the victim to reach out for "help."
  • • Once contacted, the scammer persuades the victim to install software, providing them with remote access. Under the pretense of running a virus scan, the scammer asserts the victim's computer is, or could be, hacked.
    • They then guide the victim to their financial accounts to check for unauthorized transactions. This move helps the scammer determine which account to target.
    • The victim is informed that the bank's fraud department will soon contact them.
  • Step 2 – Banking Fraud: Another scammer, pretending to be from the victim's financial institution, reaches out.
  • • The victim is told that a foreign hacker has accessed their account. They are then instructed to move their money to a supposedly safe U.S. Government account. The transfer mediums suggested are wire transfers, cash, or even cryptocurrency. The victims are told to keep the real reasons behind the money transfer a secret.
  • Step 3 – Government Deception: In some instances, victims might receive contact from scammers posing as U.S. Government representatives.
  • • If the victim becomes wary, they might receive counterfeit official correspondence to validate the scam.
    • They are continuously pressured to move their funds for supposed protection.
• One case from El Paso County revealed a loss of $99,000, where a computer pop-up misled a victim. This incident resulted in the victim being connected to fake tech support, which then led to deceitful bank fraud personnel, who convinced the victim that federal law enforcement was involved.
• From January to June this year, 19,000 tech support scams were reported to the FBI, resulting in losses of over $542 million. This figure marks a 40 percent increase from 2022, with nearly half of the victims aged over 60.
• Tips to Safeguard Against the Scam
• • Avoid unsolicited pop-ups, text, or email links and attachments.
  • Disregard contact numbers provided in unexpected pop-ups, texts, or emails.
  • Refrain from downloading software at the behest of unknown contacts.
  • Never allow unknown contacts to control your computer.
  • Remember, the U.S. Government will not ask for money transfers via wire transfer, cryptocurrency, or gift/prepaid cards.
• How to Report Fraudulent Activity
• • The FBI urges victims to report any dubious activities to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov. Information like the scammer's name or company, communication methods including websites, emails, phone numbers, bank account details, and recipient names should be provided.