Know the loan scam and how to protect yourself

There are already almost 400 people arrested for applying fake loan scams in 2023 in Rio de Janeiro. Understand how the scam works and how to protect yourself from it.

The first thing that scammers do is find the data of their potential victims on the deep web, the deepest layer of the internet. From this data, they contact the victims, which is when they offer new loans or renegotiation of old loans.

During the conversation with the victims, the scammers get the rest of the personal, bank and photograph data, which are later used to open accounts and take out loans without the victim’s permission, who becomes responsible for payment.

Maria Izileia Machado was one of the victims of the coup in São João do Meriti, Rio de Janeiro. The elderly woman was inside the house when a woman knocked on her gate claiming to be an INSS employee, presenting a document that showed her full name, CPF, name of the bank and the agency she used to withdraw her retirement and pension.

The scammer said it was a procedure that needed to be done in person, and asked to photograph the RG and the elderly woman. Maria only found out about the scam when she went to withdraw her retirement and pension money, seeing that she was in debt of R$ 104,000 from a loan unknown to her, which was divided into 80 installments of R$ 1.3 directly deducted of her salary.

Maria’s scam has not been resolved and she still has to pay off the loan. Months later, the scammers still tried to strike the elderly woman again, this time offering a renegotiation of the same loan.

The police discovered that the scammers have several scripts to talk to the victims, including one used in case there is distrust.

Among the tips for not falling for the scam are: not trusting advantageous and very attractive proposals, especially when it occurs in messaging apps, such as WhatsApp; and if you are going to make loans, go straight to physical branches or direct with banks where they have concurrent accounts. If you suspect that you have been a victim or suspect a scam, you are advised to go straight to the police.

Featured photo: Protect yourself from the loan scam. Playback/Getty Images