{"id":88617,"date":"2018-04-25T11:36:07","date_gmt":"2018-04-25T18:36:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/securingtomorrow.mcafee.com\/?p=88617"},"modified":"2025-08-05T02:22:51","modified_gmt":"2025-08-05T09:22:51","slug":"phone-scammers-impersonating-chinese-consulate-staff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mcafee.com\/blogs\/mobile-security\/phone-scammers-impersonating-chinese-consulate-staff\/","title":{"rendered":"Wrong Number: Scammers Run Off With Millions by Impersonating Chinese Consulate Staff"},"content":{"rendered":"

Remember prank calls? We all used to make them as kids as a way to fake out friends and classmates. The age-old tradition isn\u2019t just exclusive to teens, however, as cybercriminals still use the tactic modern day. Only their intentions are a bit more malicious than your average middle schooler. In fact, just this week, phone scammers pretending<\/a> to be from a Chinese Consulate office are tricking<\/a> people in the U.S. into giving them large amounts of money.<\/p>\n

First reported to The Verge<\/a>, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it believes scammers are targeting people who have recently immigrated from China to the U.S. and have been asking these people to pick up packages or provide personal data to the \u201cconsulate staff.\u201d Conveniently enough, this data is largely financial information. Unfortunately, the scam has seen some success, as the\u00a0New York Police Department<\/a> has reported that 21 Chinese immigrants have been scammed out of $2.5 million since December 21st, 2017. The majority of these victims are seniors.<\/p>\n

Tips to Avoid Tricky Scams<\/h2>\n

This isn\u2019t the first we\u2019ve heard of phone scammers taking advantage of innocent people \u2013 as many out there have fallen victim to easily believable social engineering schemes<\/a> such as this. Therefore, in order to avoid tricky scams like this one, be sure to follow these tips:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n