New Tax Rebate Payment Scam Reported In Minnesota
This should come as no surprise! There is another scam going around and this one is targeting Minnesotans all across the state. As you probably know by now, rebate checks have been dispersed to residents who qualify this month.
These are also known as 'Governor Walz rebate checks' and started hitting bank accounts earlier this month. I personally did not keep up with these checks or who was receiving them so it is possible I would have fallen for this particular scam! I am sure others are in the same boat.
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It didn't take long for scammers to go all in with this one, with several Minnesota banks warning customers to look out for those taking advantage of the situation. So what is the scam? You get a phone call with a scammer posing as an employee of the state.
From there, you are asked to give them your bank routing number and your account number so they can send your money via direct deposit. Like I said, I did not keep up with the rebate check situation so I may have thought this was legitimate.
The scam must be going around the entire state, in towns big and small, because more than one bank posted about the scam and warned customers about it. From a bank in Osakis, Minnesota to Glenwood State Bank, this is hitting more than one part of the state and could happen anywhere.
It seems the scammers are using the same exact ruse regardless of where they are targeting. It goes without saying but never give your personal information out over the phone, even if you think it you are speaking to someone from a trusted organization. It is better to be safe than sorry!
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There is always some sort of scam going on these days, whether a phone scam, a text message scam or an in-person scam. If you think something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. A quick Google search will do wonders!