IG Warns Public About Fraudulent Phone Calls Threatening Arrest or Legal Action
Reading Time: 2 MinutesLast Updated: December 7, 2018
The Acting Inspector General of Social Security, Gale Stallworth Stone, is urging citizens to remain vigilant of telephone impersonation schemes that exploit the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) reputation and authority.
The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) continues to receive reports from across the country about fraudulent phone calls from people claiming to be from SSA. Recent reports have indicated that unknown callers are using increasingly threatening language in these calls. The callers state, due to improper or illegal activity with a citizen’s Social Security number (SSN) or account, a citizen will be arrested or face other legal action if they fail to call a provided phone number to address the issue. This is a scam; citizens should not engage with these calls or provide any personal information.
SSA employees do contact citizens, generally those who have ongoing business with SSA, by telephone for customer-service purposes. However, SSA employees will never threaten you for information; they will not state that you face potential arrest or other legal action if you fail to provide information. In those cases, the call is fraudulent, and you should just hang up.
“Unfortunately, scammers will try anything to mislead and harm innocent people, including scaring them into thinking that something is wrong with their Social Security account and they might be arrested,” Stone said. “I encourage everyone to remain watchful of these schemes and to alert family members and friends of their prevalence. We will continue to track these scams and warn citizens, so that they can stay several steps ahead of these thieves.”
The OIG recently warned that some of these impersonation calls have “spoofed” SSA’s national customer service phone number, displaying 1-800-772-1213 as the incoming number on caller ID.
The Acting Inspector General urges citizens to be extremely cautious, and to avoid providing information such as your SSN or bank account numbers to unknown persons over the phone or internet unless you are certain of who is receiving it. If you receive a suspicious call from someone alleging to be from SSA, you should report that information to the OIG at 1-800-269-0271 or online at https://oig.ssa.gov/report.
For more information, please visit https://oig.ssa.gov/newsroom/scam-awareness. For media inquiries, please contact Andrew Cannarsa, OIG’s Communications Director, at (410) 965-2671.
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Andrew Cannarsa, OIG Communications Director
Andrew Cannarsa, OIG Communications Director
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Gary B.
Calls are still being made because I received a call today. Stating that my payments is being discontinued and being taken to court. The caller didn’t ask me any questions about my personal info but told me to press 1. I know I shouldn’t have pressed it but when calls are being made like that I know for me I get scared because that is my only source of income. I can no longer work and I’m very sick. When I pressed the 1 button nothing happened so I hung up. I was told by other people saying that social security would never contact you by phone only by mail. I’m asking if anyone knows if that is true.
A.C.
Hi, Gary. Thanks for checking in with us. We do not usually make random calls. If anyone receives calls saying that they are from Social Security, do not give out any personal information. Suspicious calls should be reported to the Office of the Inspector General at 1-800-269-0271 or online. You can find additional information here. We hope this helps.
Sonia c.
I got a telephone call from this number (218) 210-2631 the people on the other side asked for my social security. When I called the number back the peopl answered: “ SocialSecurity”
A.C.
Hi, Sonia. We do not usually make random calls. If anyone receives calls saying that they are from Social Security, do not give out any personal information. Suspicious calls should be reported to the Office of the Inspector General at 1-800-269-0271 or online. You can find additional information here. We hope this helps.
Darrin
I received a call from (512) 564-8525. Stating I have court action against me. I want to make sure my SSN has not been hacked or something. My records were part of the service members that were stolen a while back and then again a few years ago through DHS.
A.C.
Thanks for checking in with us, Darrin. We do not usually make random calls. If anyone receives calls saying that they are from Social Security, do not give out any personal information. Suspicious calls should be reported to the Office of the Inspector General at 1-800-269-0271 or online. You can find additional information here. Thanks, again.
alan e.
i recied a call from someone reporting i was being investigated for fraud. the call came from 215 234 1056 but i missed the call back number. it was an automated call. will the social security office ever call me for a matter like this?
A.C.
Thanks for checking in with us, Alan. We do not usually make random calls. If anyone receives calls saying that they are from Social Security, do not give out any personal information. Suspicious calls should be reported to the Office of the Inspector General at 1-800-269-0271 or online. You can find additional information here. Thanks, again.
Shirley
The Fraudulent Phone Callers leave their phone number for you to call back. Why can’t the SSA find the person who has these numbers and close them down – I could not find where to write my report. The only thing I can do is block their numbers but they still keep come at least 3 a day. Baltimore, MD 443-982-8995 Millersville, MD 410-697-5949
A.C.
Hi, Shirley. Thanks for letting us know. We do not usually make random calls. If anyone receives calls saying that they are from Social Security, do not give out any personal information. Suspicious calls should be reported to the Office of the Inspector General at 1-800-269-0271 or online. You can find additional information here. We hope this helps.
Anonymous
Just got one of these from 800-996-4057
You can actually listen to what the scam sounds like here:
http://nomorobo.com/lookup/800-996-4057
A.C.
Hi. Thanks for letting us know. We do not usually make random calls. If anyone receives calls saying that they are from Social Security, do not give out any personal information. Suspicious calls should be reported to the Office of the Inspector General at 1-800-269-0271 or online. You can find more information here. Thanks, again.
Joseph W.
One of the easiest ways to know if you’re getting a scam phone call is to listen for the area code when they give the phone number you’re supposed to call. If it’s anything other than a toll-free area code (800, 888, 855, 866, etc), or something outside your immediate local area codes, then it’s most likely a scam. And if they’ve called you and you did NOT initiate contact with them (and this pretty much applies to most other phone scams–like your Microsoft “computer” will be shut down in an hour), then it’s definitely a scam. SSA is not going to make you call a long-distance number (if you’re still on a landline) to contact SSA; in most cases, even trying to contact your local SSA office winds up with a toll-free number rather than an actual local number.
Donna b.
I was called by 6104658517 with a threatening message sent by an officer. She said i needed to call this.# because of suspicious occurrences with my ss #. I know iy is a hoax. Wanted to send a.report. thank you
A.C.
Hi, Donna. Thanks for letting us know. We do not usually make random calls. If anyone receives calls saying that they are from Social Security, do not give out any personal information. Suspicious calls should be reported to the Office of the Inspector General at 1-800-269-0271 or online. You can find additional information here. Thanks, again!
Susana R.
I received several calls from the Newberry area and Yermo area. Today I answered and I said I am not disabled, then they hang up. These are poor areas of California in the Boonies and these fraudsters want your social security number to do FRAUD. Nothing good I assume. Numbers displaying 760-254-0445,760-387-1484,760-309-3764,and today 760-257-2902.
V.V.
Hi Susana: Thank you for letting us know. If the caller is claiming to be from Social Security—it is critical that you pay attention to the tone and content of the message from the caller. In some cases, the caller states that Social Security does not have all of your personal information, such as your Social Security number (SSN), on file. Other callers claim Social Security needs additional information so the agency can increase your benefit payment, or they threaten that Social Security will terminate your benefits if they do not confirm your information. This appears to be a widespread issue, as reports have come from people across the country. These calls are not from Social Security.
If you receive a call from someone claiming to be from Social Security, we urge you to always be cautious and to avoid providing sensitive information such as your SSN or bank account information. Never reveal personal data to a stranger who calls you, and never send the stranger money via wire transfer or gift cards.
Social Security employees will never threaten you for information; they will not state that you face potential arrest or other legal action if you fail to provide information or pay a fee. In those cases, the call is fraudulent, and you should just hang up. If you receive these calls, report the information to the Office of the Inspector General at 1-800-269-0271 or online at oig.ssa.gov/report.
Christina R.
I just received a call from someone who claimed they was the Social Security Office and they wanted me to give them my SSN, but don’t worry I did not give it to them because I knew it was a scam. What are you guys doing about these people?
V.V.
Hi Christina: Thanks for reaching out. We are warning citizens that if the caller is claiming to be from Social Security—it is critical that you pay attention to the tone and content of the message from the caller. In some cases, the caller states that Social Security does not have all of your personal information, such as your Social Security number (SSN), on file. Other callers claim Social Security needs additional information so the agency can increase your benefit payment, or they threaten that Social Security will terminate your benefits if they do not confirm your information. This appears to be a widespread issue, as reports have come from people across the country. These calls are not from Social Security.
If you receive a call from someone claiming to be from Social Security, we urge you to always be cautious and to avoid providing sensitive information such as your SSN or bank account information. Never reveal personal data to a stranger who calls you, and never send the stranger money via wire transfer or gift cards.
Social Security employees will never threaten you for information; they will not state that you face potential arrest or other legal action if you fail to provide information or pay a fee. In those cases, the call is fraudulent, and you should just hang up. If you receive these calls, report the information to the Office of the Inspector General at 1-800-269-0271 or online at oig.ssa.gov/report.