We’ve seen a sharp uptick in Amazon scams in Guthrie County recently resulting in individuals losing hundreds and even thousands of dollars. It’s vitally important to look out for these scams because unlike unauthorized credit card usage, these charges are not recoverable.
According to Jamie Patrick, executive vice president, Guthrie County State Bank, there are five key ways to protect yourself.
- Do not answer or respond to any calls, texts or emails claiming to be from an Amazon representative.
- Be very skeptical if you get contacted by someone saying there was a fraudulent charge on your Amazon account and they can help. It’s a scam! Never give your credit card or login details to someone that contacted you.
- When in doubt, contact Amazon directly by visiting amazon.com/contact-us or contact Guthrie County State Bank and we can walk you through what to do.
- No legitimate sale or transaction requires you to pay with gift cards or asks you to send photos of gift cards. It is always a scam.
- If you get a call, text or email from Amazon encouraging you to download a mobile app, immediately disregard it. These apps allow scammers to remote into your phone and watch your every move.
Fraudsters use many methods to conduct scams and can be very convincing, especially when they pretend to be associated with a well-known brand like Amazon. Please spread the word about these Amazon scams to help keep everyone on high alert so no one else is impacted.
You can protect yourself against scam messages, also known as phishing attacks by:
- Being skeptical of unsolicited emails, calls or texts.
- Ignoring unsolicited messages that ask for personal information.
- Ignoring calls for immediate action.
- Being wary of requests to pay via wire transfer, debit card or a mobile payment service (CashApp, Zelle, Venmo, etc).
We are here to help. If you have questions or need assistance, please call us!
Guthrie Center location: 641-332-2218 or toll free at 866-747-2218
Panora location: 641-755-2400 or toll free at 877-755-2400