Veterans’ frauds, caution in answering online questions and ways to avoid all scams

Prior to the U.S. Veterans Day holiday, Winston Mittens, a retired Army staff sergeant, answered a call from someone who said he worked at Mittens’ bank. The caller said the bank was beefing up its security, so it needed Winston to verify his account information and Social Security number, which he did. But in the next week, Winston visited his bank to deposit a check and found he had a zero balance in his account. A bank official told Winston that someone had used his identity to steal his banking credentials and drain his money. Lucky for him, the bank covered the fraud and restored his balance. The bank also changed his account credentials so he hopefully wouldn’t be a victim again.

Vets and service members are prey for impostor scams

Although this case is fictional, it represents a scam aimed toward U.S. veterans, service members and their families, especially around military holidays like Veterans Day. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), fraudster callers — who are impersonating representatives of USAA Bank, Navy Federal Credit Union and other banks — contact victims via phone calls and voicemail, emails and texts to gain access to personally identifiable information (PII) to steal their banking credentials and identities.