FBI Denver warned the public on Thursday of a new scam dubbed “The Phantom Hacker” that they say targets older adults.

According to FBI Denver, scammers impersonate technology, banking and government officials in a complex ruse to convince a typically older victim that foreign hackers have infiltrated their financial account. The scammers then instruct the victim to immediately move their money to what they say is a U.S. government account to protect their assets.

“These scammers are cold and calculated,” said FBI Denver Special Agent in Charge Mark Michalek in a news release. “They are targeting older members of our community who are particularly mindful of potential risks to their nest eggs. The criminals are using the victims’ own attentiveness against them. By educating the public about this alarming new scam, we hope to get ahead of these scammers and prevent any further victimization.”

According to FBI Denver, some victims are losing their entire life savings.

From from January through June of this year, FBI Denver said there were 19,000 tech support scams reported to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center. More than $542 million was lost during that time frame. The losses this year already exceed 2022 losses by 40%. Almost 50% of those victims are older than 60 years old.

Phantom Hacker scam: How it works

The FBI said the scam is often perpetrated in three steps:

Step 1 – Tech Support Imposter

A scammer posing as customer support representative from a legitimate technology company initiates contact with the victim through a phone call, text, email or a pop-up window on their computer and instructs the victim to call a number for assistance.

Once the victim calls the phone number, a scammer directs the victim to download a software program allowing the scammer remote access to the victim’s computer. The scammer pretends to run a virus scan on the victim’s computer and falsely claims the victim’s computer either has been or is at risk of being hacked.

Next, the scammer requests the victim open their financial accounts to determine whether there have been any unauthorized charges – a tactic to allow the scammer to determine which financial account is most lucrative for targeting. The scammer informs the victim they will receive a call from that financial institution’s fraud department with further instructions.

Step 2 – Financial Institution Imposter

A scammer, posing as a representative of the financial institution mentioned above, such as a bank or a brokerage firm, contacts the victim. The scammer falsely informs the victim their computer and financial accounts have been accessed by a foreign hacker and the victim must move their money to a “safe” third-party account, such as an account with the Federal Reserve or another U.S. government agency.

The victim is directed to transfer money via a wire transfer, cash or wire conversion to cryptocurrency, often directly to overseas recipients. The victim is also told not to inform anyone of the real reason they are moving their money. The scammer may instruct the victim to send multiple transactions over a span of days or months.

Step 3 – U.S. Government Imposter

In the third step, the victim may be contacted by a scammer posing as someone from the Federal Reserve or another U.S. government agency. If the victim becomes suspicious, the scammer may send an email or a letter on what appears to be official U.S. government letterhead to legitimize the scam. The scammer will continue to emphasize the victim’s funds are unsafe and they must be moved to a new “alias” account for protection until the victim concedes.

According to FBI Denver, victims often suffer the loss of entire banking, savings, retirement and investment accounts under the guise of “protecting” their assets.

Tips to protect yourself

The FBI recommends that the public take the following steps to protect themselves from “The Phantom Hacker” scam:

? Do not click on unsolicited pop-ups, links sent via text messages or email links or attachments.

? Do not contact the telephone number provided in a pop-up, text or email.

? Do not download software at the request of an unknown individual who contacted you.

? Do not allow an unknown individual who contacted you to have control of your computer.

The U.S. government will never request you send money to them via wire transfer, cryptocurrency or gift/prepaid card.

Reporting suspected fraud

The FBI requests victims report these fraudulent or suspicious activities to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at www.ic3.gov. Victims are asked to include as much information as possible, such as:

? The name of the person or company that contacted you.

? Methods of communication used, including websites, emails and telephone numbers.

? The bank account number where the funds were wired to and the recipient’s name(s).

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