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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Jennifer H.
I got an automated message stating my account was marked for frAud and an arrest warrent had been issued against me the number was 855-334-5448.
Deanna G.
just received a phone call on this very scam from 210-405-3825. Hung up on them.
David o.
Been getting calls from a 940-784-3950
Stating based on my social security number warrant been issued for my arrest and I need to contact them urgently
I have done nothing wrong so I know this is a fraudulent scam call
Check the number out maybe this could help you find these people
Heathjw
Thank you for spelling out exactly what to do when these scammers call. Hang up!!! Really concerned? Call the SSA directly at number listed on SSA site. Losers like these never will come out in the open, it would expose them to capture. The only power they have is your susceptibility to their fear mongering. PS. If they pretend to be a relative in distress, directly contact the relative that they claim to be.
Claudia
I am receiving calls (many) from SSA impersonators saying I have fraudulent activity on account and they are starting legal proceedings. The # is 1-505-695-1626. How do I stop these?
V.V.
Hi Claudia: 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.
Susan C.
Been receiving numerous daily fraudulant calls. From 4 different phone numbers. 844-936-4243, 800-269-0271, 800-772-1213, 833-202-4566. Quite annoying.
A.C.
Hi, Susan. Thanks for letting me 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.
peter W.
Had a telephone from a person saying that they where from Social Security that my was being suspend due fraud on my account pressed number 1 on phone the person started to say the same and had three questions to ask I said what is your name as I will call the local police dept he jabber in some language and hung up. The number they called from was !-800-747-7832 tried to call them back just got a engaged tone
A.C.
Hi, Peter. 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.
Dianna L.
It would be good to have a way to verify if a caller is a legitimate SSA employee. I received a call but how do I know who he is??? I was expecting someone to call me but my phone indicated “Scam Likely”.
I waited 40 minutes to talk to a person who could not help me but did identify the phone number and person’s name as legitimate.
Charlotte H.
3/6/2019
Today I received two extremely threatening phone calls with recorded messages from callers saying they were representatives of the Social Security Administration. They said my Social Security card was being revoked and I was going to be arrested for some unspecified illegal activity unless I immediately returned their phone call. I did not call them back because it was obviously a scam and I knew the Social Security Administration would never communicate in that manner. The numbers they called from saved on my caller ID:
949-203-9858 (California)
631-768-3127 (New York)
A.C.
Hi, Charlotte. Thanks for letting us know. 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.
Jennifer
This number called me. It’s probably one of thousands but thought I’d leave it here for another to be wary. (706) 685-1126