{"id":109843,"date":"2019-11-22T10:28:47","date_gmt":"2019-11-22T15:28:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/?p=109843"},"modified":"2019-11-22T10:28:47","modified_gmt":"2019-11-22T15:28:47","slug":"social-security-administration-inspector-general-announce-new-online-reporting-form-for-scam-calls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/?p=109843","title":{"rendered":"Social Security Administration, Inspector General announce new online reporting form for scam calls"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Andrew Saul,\nCommissioner of Social Security, and Gail S. Ennis, the Inspector General for\nthe Social Security Administration, announce the launch of a dedicated online\nform at https:\/\/oig.ssa.gov<\/a> to\nreceive reports from the public of Social Security-related scams. These\nscams\u2014in which fraudulent callers mislead victims into making cash or gift card\npayments to avoid arrest for purported Social Security number\nproblems\u2014skyrocketed over the past year to become the #1 type of fraud reported\nto the Federal Trade Commission and the Social Security Administration. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To combat these scams, Social Security and the OIG will use\nthe new online form to capture data that will be analyzed for trends and\ncommonalities. The OIG will use the data to identify investigative leads, which\ncould help identify criminal entities or individuals participating in or\nfacilitating the scams. Ultimately, these efforts are expected to disrupt the\nscammers, help reduce this type of fraud, and reduce the number of victims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are taking action to raise awareness and\nprevent scammers from harming Americans,\u201d Commissioner Saul said. \u201cI\nam deeply troubled that our country has not been able to stop these crooks\nfrom deceiving some of the most vulnerable members of our society.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Commissioner Saul and Inspector General Ennis encourage the\npublic to use the new online form to report Social Security phone scams\nincluding robocalls and live callers, as well as email, text, and in-person\nscams. The form allows people to create a unique Personal Identification Number,\nso if OIG contacts a person about their report, they will know the call is\nlegitimate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAwareness is our best hope to thwart the scammers,\u201d said\nInspector General Ennis. \u201cTell your friends and family about them and report\nthem to us when you receive them, but most importantly, just hang up and ignore\nthe calls.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social Security employees do occasionally contact\npeople–generally those who have ongoing business with the agency–by telephone\nfor business purposes. However, Social Security employees will never threaten a\nperson, or promise a Social Security benefit approval, or increase, in exchange\nfor information or money. In those cases, the call is fraudulent and people\nshould just hang up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Generally, the agency mainly calls people who have\nrecently applied for a Social Security benefit, someone who is already\nreceiving payments and requires an update to their record, or a person who has\nrequested a phone call from the agency. If a person is not in one of these\nsituations, they normally would not receive a call from the agency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social Security will\nnot:<\/p>\n\n\n\n