BPD Community Alert: The Boston Police Department would like to inform the public on increased use of couriers by scammers to retrieve cash and precious metals from victims.
The use of couriers by scammers has most commonly been observed in tech support scams and imposter scams where individuals pose as law enforcement, government officials, business or bank representatives and primarily target older adults.
For example, scammers may impersonate a customer service agent from a major retailer and claim that an individual’s account or card has been compromised. They then transfer the potential victim to another scammer posing as law enforcement or a bank representative to lend credibility to the scheme.
Scammers may instruct victims to liquidate assets into cash or precious metals for “safekeeping,” then send a courier to collect the items from the victim’s home or a public location. While some couriers may be complicit, many have historically been legitimate businesses unaware of the scam.
Another tactic involves scammers posing as bank or credit card representatives who claim a card has been compromised and arrange for a courier to collect it, sometimes instructing victims to cut it up. Cutting the card does not prevent misuse once the full card details are obtained.
How to Protect Yourself:
- NO financial institution, tech support service, or government entity will instruct you to liquidate assets. They will NOT instruct you to purchase gold, or other precious metals. They will NOT send a courier to your residence or public location to pick up said funds.
- If you receive a call, email, text message or respond to a computer pop-up from anyone requesting you to liquidate your assets to protect them – HANG UP, DO NOT RESPOND. Verify information through formal phone numbers found on official entity websites.
- DO NOT disclose your home address or agree to meet with unknown individuals to deliver cash or precious metals.
- DO NOT click on unknown pop-ups, links or attachments sent via text or email.
- DO NOT download software onto your device that will allow someone access to your computer.
What to Do if You Were Scammed:
- If you have paid scammers, there are some actions you can take to protect yourself from further issues and potentially get money back.
- Victims are encouraged to file a police report with their local area station, which can be found here.
- For additional reporting, victims can also file with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) or with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).