CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - Our partners with the Cuyahoga County Scam Squad want to warn you about an alarming new con that is wiping out people’s life savings.

The FBI says the ‘Phantom Hacker’ scam targets folks who are typically savvy about potential scams — yet some are still falling for this one.

This sinister scam is popping up throughout the country.

According to the FBI’s Cleveland Field Office, the scam often tricks people by using pop-ups to get their attention, then it claims to be generated from a legitimate government agency that’s warning them that their financial information has been hacked.

“We have seen this scam at an alarming uptick,” said Charlie Johnston, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Cleveland FBI.

“It happens basically in three steps,” said Johnston. “There’s going to be pop-ups or a text or an email from somebody purporting to be tech support for your device indicating that it’s important they talk with you re regarding protecting your device and your accounts.”

The scammers then tell you to contact them. They say they need remote access to your computer in order to run a scan for malware. Afterwards, they claim your computer and accounts have all been hacked.

“They’re going to advise you that you’re going to be contacted by somebody from the fraud department of your financial institution or from your investment brokerages,” said Johnston. “And that person will tell you we need to move your money to a quote ‘safe account’ in order to protect it from the hackers.”

The third step in the scam involves somebody reaching out to the potential victim, posing as a government official.

“They’ll get somebody purporting to be a representative of the U.S. government,” said Johnston. “There have been letters sent on U.S., what appears to be U.S. government letterhead. It is not, it’s completely fraudulent.”

If the scammers do gain control of your computer, they may drain your accounts. At that point there’s little you can do but report the crime to authorities.

“Many times, victims of these types of scams feel embarrassed and we would encourage people not to feel that way, we want them to come and report it,” said Johnston.

The FBI recommends that the public take the following steps to protect themselves from “The Phantom Hacker” scam:

• Do not click on unsolicited pop-ups, links sent via text messages, or email links or attachments.
• Do not contact the telephone number provided in a pop-up, text, or email.
• Do not download software at the request of an unknown individual who contacted you.
• Do not allow an unknown individual who contacted you to have control of your computer.
• The US Government will never request you send money to them via wire transfer, cryptocurrency, or gift/prepaid cards.

Reporting Suspected Fraud

The FBI said victims should report these fraudulent or suspicious activities to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at www.ic3.gov.

Be sure to include as much information as possible, such as:

• The name of the person or company that contacted you.
• Methods of communication used, to include websites, emails, and telephone numbers.
• The bank account number where the funds were wired to and the recipient’s name(s)

The FBI and 19 News are partners of the Cuyahoga County Scam Squad, a financial fraud task force that unites nonprofits, social service agencies and local, state and federal law enforcement in the fight against scams.

Cuyahoga County residents can click here to report a scam directly to the Scam Squad.

If you would like to speak with an investigator or receive written materials to help you protect yourself from scams, please call the Cuyahoga County Department of Consumer Affairs at 216-443-SCAM (7226).

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