![]() ![]() While the actual amount referenced could be anything, this does serve as a useful first glance indicator. If you see people warning about this type of attack online, they usually reference somewhere in the region of $2,000 to $2,500 as the scammer sweet spot. The moment someone offers to send you money by check and have you forward some of that cash somewhere else, it’s high alert time. ![]() Nobody is going to randomly approach you with the promise of free money and work for the cost of materials alone. If they do this by check, beware: it may well be a scam. If you sell items online, people will occasionally send you too much as if by accident. Sadly, that price is “ You’ve been ripped off”. Fraudsters offer to cover your car with ads, for a price. They get the card codes, you’re left with the remnant of a fake check. Fraudsters make you think a personal assistant job is for the taking, then send you a check to buy gift cards for your “boss”. This scam is all a spin on the much older fake check scam, covered in detail by the FTC. I checked windows virus protection and it said threat detected, I tried resolving the treat but the button wasn't doing anything, so I promptly shut down my computer and unplugged my router. She sent me an email with an image of a cheque, I stupidly opened the image and 5 seconds later my email closed the image and sent it to my junk folder. Some recipients were convinced they'd received some sort of malware and have, in extreme cases, formatted their device just to be on the safe side. Some of the scammers also include attachments with their messages. After a few weeks, with the scammer long gone, the check will eventually bounce and you’ll absorb the cost of the remaining check money from your own finances. You also have a check pending against your account. At this point, if you pay up then you're $500 down from your own money. Someone said that they'll want some muse for an art thing, and so she send me a check of $2500 to pay me $500 with the remaining $2000 sent to her. From this, you’re supposed to take something in the region of $500 and forward this money on to the artist for the cost of materials. ![]() ![]() The most common approach involves the scammer sending you a check, often in the region of $2,500. "Luckily" for this person, the payment amount in this example ($100 for art supplies) is not typical for this scam, and significantly lower than usual. I didn’t even have time to fully think it through but I guess that is exactly what they want. They quickly pressured me into doing a mobile check deposit and that everything was legit. Then a third party started messaging me after I had given the artist my phone number and full name. I was a bit uncomfortable but they assured me everything was safe and even showed me screenshots of other people doing this as well. And that my payments were through the museum as well. I told them they could use my photo but they had insisted I needed to be paid in order to show the museum the proof of my consent. Actual photos of the person messaging me and photos of their work in a well laid out time line as well. Let's hear from one of the Reddit posters impacted:Īn artist approached me on Instagram asking if they could use one of my photos for their up and coming project at a legitimate art museum. It’s called the “Muse scam”, and targets users of Instagram. We’re seeing a number of complaints on Reddit and elsewhere regarding a scam which flares up every so often. ![]()
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