Unless you’re an RV full-timer with no real home address, you could be hoodwinked by a scary scam. Your phone rings, and the caller identifies themself as a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent. It seems the agency has intercepted a package of drugs with your name and address on it. The real U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency says there’s recently been a huge surge across the country with this scam. How does the scam work, and how can you protect yourself from this federal agent phone scam?
They make federal agent phone scam seem so real
What makes the scam seem real is the depth and detail of the information the “agent” will provide. Would-be victims are reporting that the scammers are insistent that they must confirm certain details because CBP has intercepted a shipment of drugs with the “target’s” name and address and that cooperation is important to ensure the case is resolved. If the they refuse to comply, the scammer threatens that the police will be arriving. If the “target” asks the scammer for a name, he provides an actual CBP employee’s name and phone number available on the internet for the target to verify. Some scammers are even providing fake case numbers and badge numbers.
You might also receive a “robocall” for the same scheme. The variation is a pre-recorded message stating that a “shipment of drugs or money with your name on it has been intercepted.” You’ll then be instructed to press #1 to speak with a CBP officer/agent. When connected, the scammer will try to confirm your banking information.
Here’s how to smell a rat
- CBP won’t call you out of the blue with promises of money or threats. Is the caller asking you to pay a fee or share your Social Security, credit card, or bank account numbers over the phone? Hang up. It’s a scam.
- CBP never uses gift cards, cryptocurrency, or wire transfers. If someone asks you to pay this way, it’s a scam. Always.
- Don’t trust caller ID. Scammers can make their phone numbers look real even if they’re not.
Check with CBP if you’re unsure about whether a call or email is real. Never call back phone numbers in caller ID, or left in voicemails, emails, or social media messages. Instead, type the agency name into a search bar and click on their webpage to find contact information.
Don’t fall for the federal agent phone scam. Anyone receiving any type of call from someone claiming to be from U.S. Customs and Border Protection and seeking any type of personal information should just hang up. Phone scams can be reported to the Federal Trade Commission online by clicking here.
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Received a text message yesterday from US Customs saying that they have a USPS parcel they are having trouble to clear. Had a sketchy web address to respond to. Message was sent from a Canada phone number. Forward everything to my phone carrier and blocked everything from that number.
Wow! Thanks for the firsthand report, David. I’m glad you didn’t fall for it. Have a good evening/night. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
Same type text from a UK number. Blocked and deleted.
30 Days in the electric chair would be an appropriate sentence for those scammers!
5 minutes would suffice.
👍 I was thinking the same thing, J B. Any trace of him would be long gone, long before the three months is up. Take care. 😀 –Diane
Got essentially the same text message as David Spradlin reported, also from a Canada number.
Yikes! Thanks, Ron. Reports such as yours and David’s help our readers realize how widespread this problem is so they are more vigilant if it happens to them. Have a good night. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
Shouldn’t be hard. Can’t be scammed if you don’t answer the phone/message.
If your phone number is not in my contact list, I will not answer, so you better leave me a voicemail, or your number will be blocked. The exception is if I’m suddenly dealing with someone new and now I’m expecting a call. As soon as I’m done with that call, I put their number in my contacts. Our neighbor got scammed out of 14K earlier this year with a Microsoft computer scam.
Micro-shaft is more like it. Linux it is.
Typical automated spam call will ring for 7 or 8 seconds before their machine hangs up and goes to the next potential victim. Do not answer unknown numbers until about 10 seconds.
My general rule, don’t answer and block. I have over 5000 blocked fake numbers.
FTC has really let the taxpayers down on blocking the spam networks from operating in the US.
Whatever happened to the non-functional do not call scam…another failed experiment.
Fed’s never call you on the phone! If you get a call, tell them to “send you a letter”, that will be an End of your Scam call. Fed’s always send letters by USPS Mail.
Yes!
This is very similar to some IRS scams. There’s always a letter and usually 2 or 3 before any real action. But don’t ignore those letters!!
Never answer a phone call if you do not know who it is. If it is a scam, they usually will not leave a phone message. If this happens to me, I assume it a scam and then block the number.
Government agencies are hardly so friendly and helpful. And I ignore all calls for which I don’t recognize, which is about 3/4ths these days.
I take it to the next level and usually have a little fun with them. I will say something like, since you have all my info you realize that I work for, – The FBI- CIA- ICE- or CBP.
They hang up quite quickly. I sometimes add that all my calls are traced. Very quick end to conversation.
I’m getting messages from USPS to confirm my address for delivery of a package. If it really was USPS they’de be able to verify that my address is a USPS box#
Thank you, Russ and Tina! Great information; thanks! My own strategy is to only answer calls from numbers stored in my phone. I figure legit callers will leave a message. If the caller does not, then so much the better. Have a great weekend and safe travels!