Scams have become a part of day-to-day living when it comes to technology. According to a Federal Trade Commission release, around $15.9 billion was lost to fraud in 2025.
Here are ways people can avoid scams to save money and time.
UTA Police Capt. Mike McCord said in an email that scammers often call or email with unbelievable circumstances, often spoofing their number or email address to appear legitimate.
The UTA Information Security Office says phishing emails appear to be from official sources but ask for personal information such as passwords.
McCord said if an unsolicited call or email demands payment, the recipient should stop, not give any personal or financial information, ask for contact information from the caller and end the conversation.
Research the organization and contact them directly to confirm if the previous call was real, he said.
“Legitimate organizations do not ask for gift cards or similar forms of immediate payment,” McCord said.
There are numerous ways scammers try to scam people out of money.
According to the Texas attorney general’s website, tech support scams can state a user has a virus on their computer. A foreign money exchange scam can be a person claiming to be from another country asking for private information to wire money. Bogus debt scams are where a person is contacted to pay off debts they don’t actually owe.
“Scams are avoidable if you protect yourself,” McCord said. “If it is too good to be true, it probably is.”
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