Consumer Alert
We read you loud and clear! Last year, the FTC got nearly 143,000 reports about tech support scams. We’ve been warning people about this type of scam for years. But one piece of information in the FTC’s newest Consumer Protection Data Spotlight was an eye-opener. People 60 and over were about five times more likely than younger people to tell us they lost money on this scam, even though they were less likely than younger people to say they lost money to many other types of scams. 
The FTC has brought many cases against tech support scammers, including our case just announced against Elite IT. With our law enforcement partners at the Department of Justice, other federal and state offices, and international colleagues, we’re fighting to protect older adults. And this is all part of the largest-ever nationwide elder fraud sweep focusing on tech support fraud.
But that’s not all. Visit ftc.gov/techsupportscams to see, hear, and read how to help the people you care about spot and avoid these scams – and get tips on what to do if you were scammed. Need a quick, shareable (and printable) snapshot on how to spot tech support scams? Check out our tech support scam infographic.
And, because we save the best for last, check out our new video – a compelling first-person account of how Mr. Donald Holmes of Arizona faced a tech support scam, and what he did about it.
Spotted a tech support scam? Report it at ftc.gov/complaint. And after you report it, use this handy information from ftc.gov/passiton to talk to your family and friends about what happened so they can avoid it too.
Search Terms
Scams
40 Comments
Read Our Privacy Act Statement
It is your choice whether to submit a comment. If you do, you must create a user name, or we will not post your comment. The Federal Trade Commission Act authorizes this information collection for purposes of managing online comments. Comments and user names are part of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) public records system, and user names also are part of the FTC’s computer user records system. We may routinely use these records as described in the FTC’s Privacy Act system notices. For more information on how the FTC handles information that we collect, please read our privacy policy.
Comment Policy
This is a moderated blog; we review all comments before they are posted. We expect participants to treat each other and the bloggers with respect. We will not post comments that do not comply with our commenting policy. We may edit comments to remove links to commercial websites or personal information before posting them.
We won’t post:
Comments submitted to this blog become part of the public domain. To protect your privacy and the privacy of others, please do not include personal information. Also, do not use this blog to report fraud; instead, file a complaint.