Bob Sullivan

We often think of cybercrime as a long-distance nightmare.  A victim is manipulated by someone pretending to be a lover, or a boss, or a seller, and then sends that criminal money using some electronic, virtual method.  A really disturbing trend I’ve noticed recently is the increased frequency of in-person meetings as part of a cybercrime.  A criminal visits the victim to pick up cash, or even gold, at their home (like this story we did in March). A criminal sends an Uber delivery person to pick up a  “package” that contains fraudulent payments. A victim is lured into a meeting over a Facebook Marketplace purchase, then robbed. Or, in the case of a recent Perfect Scam podcast I worked on, a con artist lurks at a “zone of trust” place like a golf course or a church looking for generous people to target with a charity scam.

This in-person meeting trend is alarming because a lot more things can go wrong when criminals are in the same physical space as their victims.  Earlier, I told you about the tragic story of an Ohio man who had been communicating with criminals attempting to commit a “grandparent scam”  and shot an Uber driver that he said he believed was part of the scam; he has been indicted for murder and pleaded not guilty. The driver, who died, was not a part of the scam.

Steve Baker, a longtime consumer advocate and former Federal Trade Commission lawyer, first pointed out this trend to me, and now I’m seeing it in many places. The Social Security Administration issued a dire-sounding warning a few weeks ago titled “Don’t Hand Off Cash to ‘Agents.’ ”   It reads:

“The Social Security Administration (SSA) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) is receiving alarming reports that criminals are impersonating SSA OIG agents and are requesting that their targets meet them in person to hand off cash. SSA OIG agents will never pick up money at your door or in any type of exchange. This is a SCAM!

NEVER exchange money or funds of any kind with any individual stating they are an SSA OIG agent. This new scam trend introduces an element of physical danger to scams that never existed before.

Meanwhile, police in New York are warning about a rise in crimes that begin as fake Facebook Marketplace ads — and end with victims staring down the barrel of a gun.

Why are cybercriminals getting this bold and meeting victims in person, or sending someone else to do that?  It’s too early to tell, but part of the reason *could* be increased transaction scrutiny at places like Zelle or cryptocurrency exchanges, along with increased fraud awareness around gift cards.  Time will tell.

In the meantime, I’m very concerned we will see more situations like that story from Ohio. Please be extra vigilant when speaking with loved ones about cybercrime.  Look and listen for signs of surprising new friends or unexpected meetings. Keep those lines of communication open.