The Jig is Up on Money Flipping Scams

The social media experience is becoming one big aggravation. The culprits behind the annoyance are those “flipping money” scam accounts. They’re a pure thorn in many users’ timeline and comments a**. When will they realize the jig is up?!

Being followed by a scammer whose profile is private should be the first sign. As a curious person, you click on the “Request” button to later realize that it’s a page full of “Turn $200 to $2000” advertisements. Or this person has 56 weeks worth of photos of wads of cash and fake testimonials. Better yet, what about the profiles that show a well-dressed man in various parts of the world, kicking back in full luxury as if he’s able to afford you the same lifestyle. Yeah right.

The sad part about the “flipping money” accounts is that it is mostly young adults under the age of 30 that fall victim. Young people are very impressionable and these scammers know this. They know that youngsters want to buy designer clothes, jewelry and stuff in effort to live like their favorite rapper or something. It is sad and you would think that Instagram would have figured out a way to block/delete these fraud accounts. But, they haven’t. Although Instagram does, periodically, conduct a sweep and delete of inactive and/or spam accounts.

Enticing a person into sending money via MoneyPak (or any other prepaid debit card) is absurd. Kids should understand that – just like you shouldn’t talk to strangers in the streets – you should not handle any type of money transaction with a complete stranger off of social media. For instance, a 26-year-old from California became a victim through a website called OnInstagram. The victim lost $300 dealing with a fraudster. Consumer advocacy sites like Fraud.org suggests that you take extreme precautions when trying to flip money.

• Before contacting the potential scammer, do a web search of their username or phone number to see if other consumers have posted warnings about that person.
• If asked to give out your MoneyPak or Vanilla control number or PIN, do not respond. Instead, contact law enforcement.
• Anyone who claims to be able to turn small amounts of up-front money into a large amount in minutes is trying to scam you.
• If you suspect you are a victim of the flipping money scam, contact local law enforcement and file a complaint with NCL at www.fraud.org.

The best way to get money is to work a real job. These fast money, get rich quick schemes are not full-proof. Be protective of yourself and your finances. Never trust any one on social media.