What is a Government Impersonation Scams?
How It Works — Step by Step
- Robocall or live call from a 'government agent' with an official-sounding badge number
- Claims your Social Security number has been suspended due to criminal activity
- Or: you owe back taxes and a warrant has been issued for your arrest
- Or: you've 'won' a government grant but must pay processing fees first
- Payment demanded immediately via iTunes/Google Play gift cards, wire transfer, or crypto
- Threatened with immediate arrest if you don't comply or hang up
Top Countries (Victims)
Top Platforms Used
⚠️ Warning Signs
- Government agencies don't call demanding immediate payment
- Real IRS sends letters first — never calls threatening arrest
- Request for gift cards — no government agency accepts these
- Threatening arrest if you don't pay right now
- Asking for your Social Security number over the phone
- Automated call asking you to press 1 to speak with an agent
✅ How to Protect Yourself
- Hang up immediately — real agencies send written notices first
- Never pay any 'fee' or 'fine' via gift cards, wire, or crypto
- The IRS will never call threatening immediate arrest
- Verify any government communication by calling the agency directly (use their official website number)
- Tell elderly relatives about this scam — they are primary targets
Real Cases from Our Database
[US] Do not order beauty products from Cradelia.com I saw a beauty product advertised on Instagram. It's a "Multi-balm" containing PDRN (Polydeoxyribonucleotide), Collagen and some other jazz (Not Sal...
Scam calls are getting way more convincing than I realized Last week I got one of those phone calls that seemed normal at first… until it suddenly really wasn’t… To start with, there’s this small orga...
[US] Provided info to a scammer but changed it last second. Am I cooked? I was just trying to contact progressive insurance because I was curious about their rates. But when I called the number it rew...
is this voicemail a scam? transcript: Eva. I'm calling on behalf of documents delivery services. We have been retained to schedule and deliver legal documents to you between the hours of 8 AM and 4 PM...
Possible delivery middleman scam? Hello! I'm in desperate financial situation and received an email from a company called Smart Freight who claimed to have met me through Indeed; my memory is rather s...
Russian immigration scam( German to Russia) Hey team I live in Australia and have done for 20 years. My mother has fallen for a Russian immigration scam. She lives in Germany and does not speak Engli...
Facebook Marketplace Today I put up my first two items on Facebook marketplace. I was so excited when I had TWO people interested in buying my desk. They both stated that they tried to message me on F...
[ Removed by moderator ] I recently used the site ez-apply.us to replace my Social Security card, and now I’m starting to wonder how much of my information they actually keep or use. Has anyone here d...
Have you been scammed by credit one bank? Hello, i recently was scammed by credit one bank, upon checking their reviews i’ve noticed thousands of other people saying the same thing: here’s my sto...
Medicare scam? Indiana USA Several friends on Medicare are getting phone calls about scheduling a "Medicare assessment/appointment" in their homes or online. These calls are not from their regular doc...
Printer support scammer or just crazy prices? My stepfather’s brother in law is an elderly man who knows very little about technology. His printer wasn’t working, so he called HP support. They someho...
Possible immigration scam or normal process? Need advice on CRS Outsourcing Pvt Ltd (https://crsvisa.com/) I’m looking for genuine feedback/reviews about CRS Outsourcing Pvt Ltd and whether anyone her...
📋 Where to Report Government Impersonation Scams
- FTC (reportfraud.ftc.gov)
- Treasury Inspector General (tigta.treasury.gov)
- SSA Office of Inspector General (oig.ssa.gov)
- FBI IC3 (ic3.gov)