Wiring money is an easy way to transfer money from one account to another, but despite all the security measures followed, many people fall victim to money wiring scams. It is believed that wire transfers are most prone to fraud as it is difficult to reverse once the payment is done. This is because once the payment is made, the scammer usually withdraws the money, or moves it to a different account making it impossible to reverse as there are no resources. In this digital world, everything has become easier, but it has also opened up cybersecurity issues and many people are falling victim to fraud. If you have to do a wire transfer, you should be careful to avoid getting scammed. Here’s on How To Do A Wire Transfer Safely Without Getting Scammed:
Recognize Email Phishing Schemes: Sometimes scammers pose as known contacts such as family members, business partners, and co-workers and they will try to contact you through email. In the email, they will usually request a payment transfer with a fake invoice, they may ask you to click on a website link, they may ask for personal information, and you may get an email saying that they have noticed suspicious activity on your account and ask you to verify the information. So, whenever you receive such an email make sure to double-check, and when you’re in doubt always ask the vendor.
Sometimes Limiting Wire Payments Is The Best Option: Wire payments are great if you have to send money immediately, but they may not be the safest mode of payment. So, if you are making a purchase from a supplier for the first time, and if they request a wire transfer, the best option would be to pay via your credit card or ACH as those payment modes are safer and they offer more protection against fraud. You can use a wire payment method but you need to be careful to avoid scammers.
Confirm The Payment Over Phone: If you have to make a wire payment to do it safely and securely, you can call the vendor and then confirm the instruction. Before sending the amount, you should call the vendor and then confirm the routing number and account number. However, if you have previous relationships with the vendor, you may have all the details necessary to reach out to them directly, so you will not have to go through the process.
Be Careful of Any Changes In Wiring Instructions: While there can be changes in the wiring instructions, you should be careful as these changes can be scams. If you have been informed of changes in wiring instruction, you should carefully scan the email and the invoice, look out for any sign of tampering, alterations, or suspicious languages. If the wiring instruction has changed, you should also call the vendor and then confirm these changes before wiring the money. Perhaps, calling them and confirming is the safest way to wire safely.
If You Are Wiring Money To A Foreign Bank, You Should Be Careful: If the vendor is asking you to wire money to a foreign bank you should be careful unless your vendor is from a different country. However, in the case of domestic services, it will be highly unlikely that the vendor will ask you to wire the money to a foreign bank. You should be extremely careful about this because most scammers and phishers use foreign banks during their fraud scheme as it makes it harder for the victim to recover their money. So, if you notice that your vendor is using a foreign bank, make sure to confirm the bank information before wiring the money.
Wiring money involves a lot of risks as you can end up getting scammed and it is almost impossible to get your money back once the transaction is completed. So, to make sure that you do not end up getting scammed, you can follow the above-stated tips.
