Financial Crimes Unit
The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) Financial Crimes Unit (FCU) is responsible for investigating felonies such as fraud, scams, forgery, identity theft, embezzlement, and various other white-collar crimes.
Recently, MCSO FCU has observed a dramatic surge in frauds and scams including criminals impersonating law enforcement and/or government officials and threatening victims for financial gain. These frauds and scams are mostly targeting senior citizens. Therefore, MCSO is spearheading an educational campaign to prevent elder abuse and target fraudulent schemes by collaborating with our strategic federal and local law enforcement partners to increase public awareness and address the growing threat of frauds and scams which are negatively affecting the residents of Maricopa County.
Fraud and scam awareness refers to actively educating the public about different and common types of frauds and scams. This website discusses frauds and scams involving gift cards, wire transfers, cryptocurrency, and the use of couriers; as well as assisting members of the public to recognize deceptive practices such as law enforcement and government agent imposter scams, romance scams, spoofing and phishing scams, grandparent scams, fake online tech support scams, and investment scams, to help identify potential threats and protect members of the public from willingly giving away personal information or money to malicious groups or individuals. This website also provides ways to identify frauds and scams as well as prevention tips to avoid becoming a victim.
DEFINITION
The dictionary defines a SCAM as:
- A dishonest scheme to gain money or possessions from someone, usually through the use of fraud.
SCAM = FRAUD
SCAMMER = CRIMINAL
2024 FBI ELDER FRAUD REPORT
- The report focuses on reported losses from frauds and scams for victims 60+ years of age.
- 2024 – Financial loss to seniors was $4.8 billion from 147,127 victims (Nationally).
- ARIZONA lost ~$191,000,000 (4th highest state)
*This is only what was reported to Law Enforcement.
BELIEVED TO BE CLOSER TO $150 BILLION!!!
WHY DO SCAMS WORK?
Scams work because they EXPLOIT HUMAN PSYCHOLOGY by drawing you into a situation and attacking vulnerabilities through the use of:
1.AUTHORITY / FEAR– Impersonating law enforcement, a government agent, or your bank with threats of legal action, public exposure, or loss of money.
2.TRUST– Posing as a family member, friend, or reliable individual.
3.IMPULSIVE / URGENT– “Act now or lose everything.”
4.GREED / OPPORTUNITY– “Too good to be true” investment or reward.
5.LOVE / EMOTION– Manipulating your feelings.
***Criminals deliberately create a sense of URGENCY and PANIC within victims to convince them to act IMPULSIVELY.
HOW DO SCAMS WORK?
CRIMINALS OFTEN USE A THREE (3) LAYERED APPROACH:
1. Contacting the Victim.
2. Making the Victim feel Safe.
3. Asking the Victim for Something.
FIRST LAYER – CONTACTING THE VICTIM
Scams almost always begin with either a:
- PHONE CALL
- TEXT MESSAGE
- MAILER
from an unknown person (CRIMINAL), usually identifying themselves as a trusted person, like a member of law enforcement or an employee with your bank or computer anti-virus company.
SECOND LAYER – MAKING THE VICTIM FEEL SAFE
- The Criminal often sounds helpful. They are also often very insistent.
- The victim often responds because they think they should, because the message is framed as a form of protection for them.
- The criminal ends up asking for money or some sort of payment.
THAT IS THE TRAP!
THIRD LAYER – ASKING THE VICTIM FOR SOMETHING
After explaining to the victim why they are being contacted (SCAM PRESENTATION), the Criminal will then usually ask for something like:
- Personal information;
- Usernames/passwords;
- Payment using either:
- Gift Cards,
- Wire Transfers,
- Cryptocurrency (Bitcoin, etc...), or
- Through the use of Couriers (To pick up Cash, Jewelry, Gold, or other Precious Metals)
***The criminal may become demanding and threatening in the hopes they create a sense of fear, which makes you do whatever you are being told.
THE ONE THING ALL SCAMS HAVE IN COMMON:
"YOU" HAVE TO DO SOMETHING!!!
DONATION SCAMS
DONATION SCAMS – EXAMPLES
“SUPPORT GROUPS” – Political Party affiliation groups (Especially during ELECTION season), Veterans, First Responders, Animals, etc..
Criminals will try and entice you using your craving to support your political party, your support for veterans, first responders, animals, and many other common causes, with the idea that your donation is needed right now!
They often tell you that your donation is tax deductible, just to sound more tempting. These are often used as fronts for widespread donation scams with fake requests for support.
DO NOT DONATE YOUR MONEY IN THESE WAYS!!!
The MCSO Financial Crimes Unit warns against donating to any organization which contacts you through unsolicited platforms, including in-person (door to door), via US mail, and via email, often using online payment platforms and QR Codes.
VERIFY DIRECTLY: If you wish to support a political party, veterans, or local first responder groups, contact those organizations directly — NOT through unsolicited phone calls, emails, or mailers.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (A.I.) AND SCAMS
The future of scams is NOT Artificial Intelligence (A.I.). The truth about A.I. is it just makes it easier for Criminals to reach more people and sound more realistic.
A.I. does NOT change what scams are trying to accomplish. Criminals are still exploiting human behavior and human reactions to get you to act.
***REGARDLESS OF TECHNOLOGY,THE CRIMINALS STILL NEED YOU TO DO SOMETHING!!!
YOUR BEST DEFENSE – 3 STEPS: STOP, THINK, RESIST
1. STOP – Stop yourself from doing anything you are told to do. Physically TAKE A STEP BACKWARD.This physical action has been proven to help mentally separate from a situation.
2. THINK – THINK about what you are being told to do by not feeling overwhelmed or rushed. Take the time to verify information using trustworthy sources, like a phone number you already have (NOT the contact information provided by the Criminal or that you received in a suspicious text message or email).
3. RESIST – RESIST the pressure to act quickly. Remember, Criminals will use fear tactics to get you to act – Urgency and creating a sense of panic is the Criminal’s best weapon.Do NOT fall victim to being impulsive.
WHY DO FRAUDS AND SCAMS WORK?
Frauds and scams work because they exploit human psychology by creating a sense of TRUST, URGENCY, and/or FEAR, often by impersonating trusted entities, offering seemingly too-good-to-be-true deals, or playing on EMOTIONS like greed or sympathy, which can lead people to make impulsive decisions without thoroughly verifying information. Scammers are OPPORTUNISTS! They are HORRIBLE people who do NOT care about what happens to you. They will purposely harm you and simply move on to the next victim.
MCSO EDUCATIONAL CAMPAIGN
The MCSO Financial Crimes Unit (FCU) regularly participates in public awareness events, complete with a PowerPoint presentation and handouts from federal agencies, showing how to avoid becoming a victim of frauds and scams.
If your community would like to learn more about how to avoid being a victim of frauds and scams, please contact your local Law Enforcement agency. If your community falls within the jurisdiction of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, please contact the MCSO Community Outreach Division to set up a presentation by the MCSO Financial Crimes Unit.
Via Email: [email protected]
Via Phone: (602) 876-1508
Via Mail / In-Person:
3325 W. Durango St.
Phoenix, AZ 85009