Do you care to learn about overpayment scams? Then keep the seatbelts fastened – we start the journey! Fake checks can appear to be cashier’s checks, money orders, personal checks, company checks, or checks that have been electronically delivered. A stranger will invite you to deposit a cheque in a bogus check scam. It’s frequently for more money than they owe you and occasionally for thousands of dollars. They advise you to return some funds to them or another individual. They always have a good excuse for why you can’t keep the entire money. They can claim they require you to give back the money they overpaid, to pay taxes or fees for a reward, to buy supplies for a job, to ship supplies, or for any other reason. However, this is a fraud. Here is how to recognize it.
Here are some facts concerning fraud overpayment.
How overpayment scams work
So, what is an overpayment scam?
An overpayment scam could target you whether you sell anything online, as a business, or through a classified ad. The con artist will get in touch with you, make you an offer that is frequently fairly attractive, and then request payment by credit card or check. They will be for more money than the pre-agreed fee. The scam artist will get in touch with you and pretend to be sorry for the overpayment. The con artist may claim that the additional funds were added to cover agency fees or additional shipping expenses. Or they can just claim that they wrote the check incorrectly. The con artist will then demand that you either return the excess money or transfer it to a different party. They will request that you provide the money to them through a wire transfer, pre-loaded debit card, or online banking transfer. After that, you learn that their check has bounced or that their credit card was stolen or fake. A more recent form of this con involves internet purchases, typically through classified websites, where the con artist sends a fake payment receipt while pretending to have paid a sum greater than what was agreed upon. The con artist will say that the funds are kept until you transmit the additional funds.
You won’t receive any of the money you pay back. You will also lose the “sold” item if you have actually mailed it. At the very least, the scammer will waste your time and keep you from accepting real bids on your sale.
Types of overpaid scams
Many con artists use fraudulent checks to steal your money. Here are a few instances:
- They recruit you as a mystery shopper: Scammers pose as companies looking to recruit mystery shoppers. According to your tutors, your initial task is to assess a store that offers gift cards, money orders, or wire transfer services like Western Union or MoneyGram. You get a check with instructions to transfer some funds to another party and deposit the remainder in a personal bank account. But once you do, the cash is gone, and the fictitious “employer” can vanish.
- You might get hired as a personal assistant: You submit an online application and believe you will be employed as a personal assistant. You are given a check and instructed to use the funds to purchase gift cards and provide your “boss” with the PINs. However, they are fraudsters and immediately utilize the gift card PINs when they have them. When the bank realizes the check is phony, you are left without the money.
- Car wrap mail ads: You accept a proposal for vehicle wrap marketing. The business instructs you to submit money to wrap installers and deposit a check. But it’s a fraud; the installers are fake, and your money has already been lost. You would have fallen for overpayment email scams.
- Winning rewards: When you win a sweepstakes, you receive a check. You must send them money for taxes, shipping and handling fees, or processing costs. However, it is not how official contests operate, and any money you send will be lost.
- You get overpaid: Customers that purchase from you online “accidentally” submit a check for more than they intended to and then urge you to reimburse the difference. However, that’s a con.
How to avoid overpayment scams
We now thoroughly understand what payment scams are, how they operate, and why we should particularly avoid them. Let’s now discuss how to stop them from happening in the first place.
- Never transfer money to anybody who asks you to give gift cards, money orders, or cryptocurrencies, or use funds from a check to do any of those things. This is usually an overpayment credit card scam. Many con artists ask you to purchase gift cards and provide the PIN codes, purchase cryptocurrencies and deliver them to them, or pay money through wire transfer services like MoneyGram. If you do, it will be as though you have given them cash. It’s so difficult to get it back.
- Offers for payment for a reward should be rejected. You shouldn’t have to pay to obtain something free. Only con artists will demand payment to get a “free” reward.
- Never take a check that is for more than the purchase price.
- Do not routinely change payment methods to accommodate a challenging transaction. If consumer requests, simply refuse to change your tried-and-true payment methods. Change your payment processors sometimes, but never take checks for more than the listed prices. Simply, anything that seems too good to be true typically is. Remember that your best practices and guidelines are in place for a reason.
- The transaction should be rejected if a customer’s identity doesn’t match the data that the card network or bank has on file. You can truly check consumers using a variety of techniques. Using the appropriate fraud detection technologies is crucial.
Step by step check overpayment scams and how to protect yourself
If you want to learn how to expose check overpayment scams, follow the guidelines below:
- Suppose the cheque’s value exceeds what was agreed upon. Request a new check.
- Send nothing and hold off on working until you see the money in your account.
- If you’re offering a service, request a call from them to go through the specifics. Be careful; while some will consent to an audio call, many will decline and invent an excuse.
- Only consent to a refund to the same card if a customer or a fraudster pays you using a credit card.
- Never transfer money on your client’s behalf to organizations or individuals outside your company. It’s thought to be money laundering.
- Do not begin working until you have received the agreed-upon sum in your account.
Meeting clients on Facetime or through a video call is a great idea; you should record and keep track of every session. Use your preferred mode of payment and pay attention to the warning signs listed above.
How to get your money back from a scammer
- Wire transfer: Call the wire transfer firm immediately to report the fraud and lodge a complaint if you transmitted money to a con artist. Request that the money transfer be canceled. Even if it’s doubtful, it’s still vital to inquire.
- Gift cards: Gift cards are not meant to be used as payment. Any person who requests gift cards as payment is a fraudster. Inform the firm that immediately supplied the gift card if you used it to pay a con artist. Inform the business that the gift card was abused. Ask them if they can give you a refund. The corporation might recover your money if you respond fast enough. Also, inform the retailer where you purchased the gift card as soon as possible.
- Cryptocurrency: If you sent the money using cryptocurrencies, contact the firm and let them know the transaction was fraudulent. If it is feasible, request that the transaction be reversed.
- Money order: If you used a money order to pay a con artist, contact the company that issued it immediately to see if you can halt the transaction. Attempt to obstruct the money order’s arrival as well.
Always ask for help
Any income lost due to an overpayment scam is your responsibility as the seller or merchant. As soon as the fraud is revealed, banks and processors wash their hands of the matter. Therefore, you must watch for strange consumer behavior and defend your company against fraud. Organizations and services are willing to assist you in developing an efficient fraud mitigation approach.
How can Radaris help?
Radaris has access to various large databases and scans everything from social media to public records to provide accurate and trustworthy reports. The website also allows users to do person searches and criminal record checks in addition to background checks. Reverse phone number lookups are among the other helpful services available. Additionally, this is one of the few background check websites that provides a variety of mobile apps for doing searches while on the move. The website offers contact reports and is the best for discovering scammers and fraudsters. You can get adequate contact information, such as phone numbers and addresses, with a free search. You must register or buy a one-time report to get more information.
Conclusion
Keep an eye out for the warning mentioned above; noticing potentially problematic transactions will help you discover overpayment frauds and other red flags more quickly, saving your company time and money. In situations when you are unsure, it is preferable to rely on the general maxim that if a deal or purchase appears too good to be true, it generally is. You will now be able to recognize this scam method for what it is and halt it in its tracks each time someone attempts to overcharge your company.
FAQs
Can I be scammed if money gets sent to me?
Yes. Ensure you never collect overpayment for any of your products or services.
What is an overpayment scam?
An advance payment or cash forwarding fraud scheme is an overpayment scam. Fraudsters will start a transaction with stolen credit card information and then promise to pay more than what is owed. The fraudster will ask that the excess money be transferred to a separate payment account or another outside source once the overage has been accepted. The goal is to turn the available credit line or account balance into readily available cash.
How do overpayment scams work?
Scammers that enable payments online or over the phone by using what appear to be real credit card or bank credentials are successful. Rarely, if ever, do you interact with the con artist. As an additional temptation, scammers may offer an incentive to seduce victims. One could “pay” for an item, then request that you return the excess minus a “commission” or “tip” as compensation for your trouble. According to the fraudster, the overage and return are typically justified by cross-country or international shipping costs.
