Phantom Hackers Threat Spreading Across U.S.

(TNS) — A growing nationwide scam could target your grandparents, the FBI warns.

“Phantom hacker” scams are on the rise and are disproportionately affecting older people, according to a Sept. 29 FBI public service announcement. It’s an “evolution of more general tech support scams,” federal officials say, as these “phantom hackers” claim to be technology support, bank staff and government officials in order to gain the trust of those they’re scamming.

The three-step scam can result in people losing their “entire banking, savings, retirement, or investment accounts,” officials say, all while the scammers are convincing them to “protect” their assets.

In the first half of 2023, 19,000 complaints were filed with the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center, according to the release. The estimated loss from the reported scams totaled over $542 million.

Around 66% of total losses were from people over 60 years old, officials say.

FBI offices in San Francisco and Cleveland also sent out specific advisories for their regions about the “phantom hacker” scam.

“These scammers are cold and calculated. They are targeting older members of our community who are particularly mindful of potential risks to their nest eggs. The criminals are using the victims’ own attentiveness against them,” FBI special agent in charge John S. Morales said in the San Francisco release.

‘Phantom hackers’ and their 3-step approach

The FBI breaks down the “phantom hacker” scam into three phases.

The first phase starts with a “tech support imposter,” officials say. The scammer typically reaches out as someone who works at a legitimate business by phone, text message or email. They tell the person that they’re looking to assist them, where they eventually get the scam victim to download software on their personal computer that gives the hacker remote access to their device.

Then, the scammer lies and tells the person they’ve detected a virus on the computer and instructs the person to open up their financial accounts to ensure no one has taken money out illegitimately, officials say.

After targeting a specific…