Ever send money through an app like Venmo, CashApp, or Zelle? They make it easy to send money fast to friends or family. But what happens when it’s a scammer on the other end?
Once you link a payment app to your debit card, credit card, or bank account, you’ll be able to send money to your friend’s or family member’s account through the app (or with Zelle, from your bank account to theirs). Typically, you’re sending money to people you know. So how do scammers convince you to send them money, too?
Scammers often pretend to be a loved one who’s in trouble and asking for money to deal with an emergency. Or a scammer might say you won a prize or a sweepstakes but need to pay some fees to collect it.