Money Theft: the library
Scams A to Z, voice clones and deepfakes, check and mail fraud, payment-app rules, what to do after a data breach, and how real officials contact you.
Open this section in the app →In this section (14)
- 📖 The scam encyclopedia: 22 common scams, A to ZIn 30 seconds: Almost every scam asks for one of three things: money sent in a way that can’t be reversed, a code or password, or remote access to your…
- 🎙️ Voice clones and deepfakes: when you can’t trust the voiceIn 30 seconds: A few seconds of someone’s voice from a video online is enough for AI tools to make it say anything. So the voice, the face on a video call…
- 🏛️ Real or fake official? How the IRS, SSA, Medicare and courts really contact youIn 30 seconds: Real agencies almost always write first, by mail. They don’t threaten arrest on the phone, don’t demand gift cards, crypto or wires, and don’t…
- ✉️ Check washing and mail theft: pay safely, and what to do if a check is alteredIn 30 seconds: Thieves take checks from mailboxes, dissolve the ink, and write in a new name and a bigger amount. Mail fewer checks, mail the ones you must…
- 📲 Zelle, Venmo, Cash App and PayPal: what the law covers when money goes wrongIn 30 seconds: The federal Electronic Fund Transfer Act and its Regulation E protect you when someone else moves money out of your account without your…
- 📬 You got a data breach notice: what to do, by what was exposedIn 30 seconds: Read the notice for one thing: what exactly was exposed. A leaked card number takes five minutes to fix. A leaked Social Security number calls…
- 💔 Romance scams and pig butchering: how the long con plays out, week by weekIn 30 seconds: The long con is patient. It starts with a chat that feels harmless, builds trust for weeks, then moves to money: first a small emergency or a…
- 🪤 Investment and crypto fraud, and the recovery scam that followsIn 30 seconds: Investment fraud sells certainty: steady high returns, no risk, a secret system. Before you hand money to anyone, look them up in FINRA…
- 💼 Job scams: fake checks, reshipping and pay-to-work tasksIn 30 seconds: A fake job pays the scammer in one of three ways: you pay to start, you move money or goods for them, or you hand over personal details they…
- 👵 Elder financial exploitation: spot it, set up protections, report itIn 30 seconds: Financial exploitation of older adults comes from strangers (scams) and from people they know (a helper, a new friend, sometimes a relative).…
- 🧊 Credit freezes, fraud alerts and the lesser-known report agencies, step by stepIn 30 seconds: A freeze stops new credit in your name and is free at Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. A fraud alert only asks lenders to double-check.…
- 🧾 Tax identity theft and the IRS IP PIN: prevent it, spot it, fix itIn 30 seconds: A thief with your SSN can file a fake return early and collect a refund before you file. The IRS Identity Protection PIN (IP PIN) is a…
- 🩺 Medical identity theft: read your EOBs and get your records fixedIn 30 seconds: Medical identity theft is when someone uses your name or insurance to get care, drugs or equipment. It drains benefits, can land bills in…
- 🧒 Child identity theft: check and freeze a child’s creditIn 30 seconds: A child’s Social Security number is valuable to thieves because nobody checks it for years. Most children have no credit file, so a file…