Here are Shelby County's most common scams and how to avoid getting hurt | Wallet Warning

For almost two years, we have provided you with topical information about scams occurring locally to help you protect your hard-earned money.

We frequently mention as we discuss the monthly Wallet Warning that Shelby Countians are hit harder by scammers than others across the country – and for greater losses.

For this guest column, we decided to take a 10,000-foot view of reported losses over the last 12 months. This was sparked by the AARP sharing a new tool that allows you to see scams reported in your county on an online map: AARP Scam Tracking Map (https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/tracking-map).

According to AARP, our community has made 21 reports totaling at least $15,102 in losses. Keep in mind that less than 10% of people who have been scammed actually report it, and these are just seniors who reported to AARP.

Our partners at the Better Business Bureau shared that their Scam Tracker (https://www.bbb.org/scamtracker) has received 696 reports in Shelby County with losses in excess of $468,000! How much more are we actually losing to scammers that isn’t reported?

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Here are the most common scams

The top scams reported to the BBB in Shelby County are:

• Phishing: 64 reports -- $17,000 loss

• Tech support: 19 reports -- $34,000 loss

• Sweepstakes/Lottery (all are Publisher’s Clearing House imposters): 22 reports -- $8,000 loss

• Government Agency Imposter (including MLGW): 27 reports -- $46,000 loss

• Employment: 76 reports -- $39,000 loss

The BBB is still getting reports of people falling for the “you must pay your bill right now with me over the phone” scams.

Remember that no legitimate bill collector is going to ask you to pay right then over the phone, especially not with a gift card or a peer-to-peer payment system like $cashapp or Apple Pay.

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Tips on keeping yourself safe from scams

Some general rules to follow to avoid getting caught by these scammers include:

• If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

• Don’t click on any links in unsolicited emails or texts that are promising a reward or threatening a punishment.

• If you feel like you need to make sure the email or text isn’t legitimate, call a number that you locate or go to an authentic website you find online. Do not use anything provided in the questionable communication.

• Don’t answer any unknown number calls. If it is important, they will leave a voicemail.

• Activate the scam identifier on your cell phone for calls. Most providers offer this feature now.

• Do not share your Social Security number, birthdate, or any other personal identifiable information with unknown people over the phone, email, text, or website.

• Do not, under any circumstances, ever pay for anything with gift cards you purchased at the communicator’s request.

If a scammer makes you a victim, please report it to our partners at the BBB (https://www.bbb.org/scamtracker).

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Here is some good news

On the good news front, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently partnered with 31 states and the District of Columbia, on a bipartisan basis, to address anticompetitive markets in agriculture and related industries that result in higher prices and fewer choices for consumers and producers. The Agriculture Department will offer expertise and funding for states to take on complex cases.

The officials will “ramp up enforcement of antitrust and consumer protection laws that will help stop conduct like price fixing or price gouging in grocery retail markets, meat and poultry processing and other agricultural markets.”

Our goal with Wallet Warnings remains the same -- to help you safeguard your money. If you have any questions or need any additional information about anything discussed here, please call (901) 222-0206.

We are happy to help you avoid scams, fraud and predatory lenders. You work hard for your money, and we want to make sure scammers don’t get it.

To view all previous Wallet Warnings, visit https://www.shelbycountytrustee.com/313/Wallet-Warnings

Regina Morrison Newman is the Shelby County Trustee.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Shelby County's most common scams and how you can avoid getting hurt