Montana Residents Warned About Peer To Peer Scam

I have honestly lost track of how many articles I have written about new scams targeting people in Montana.

It always seems to be the most vulnerable who are the primary targets of these scams as well.

READ NEXT: Sadly, Montanans Keep Falling For These 6 Sleazy Scams

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Scammers Are Targeting Money Transferring Apps

Are you like millions of people who have started to use money-transfer apps such as Venmo, Cash App, or Paypal?

Then you are opening yourself up to being a potential victim of this newest scam that has the American Bankers Association putting out an alert.

There are a few ways scammers are targeting their victims with these money-transfer apps, but we're going to focus on one that has been making the rounds lately.

READ MORE: New Montana Scam: Do NOT Trust Your Caller ID

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How This Peer To Peer Scam Is Stealing Money From Montana Bank Accounts

This scam starts off innocently enough; randomly, you'll get some money deposited into your Venmo account.

The scammer will then contact you, saying that it was a "mistake" and asking that you send the money back.

The problem is, the money most likely was stolen to begin with, and Venmo themselves say to not return the money and directly contact them if this happens to you.

Your best bet to not get scammed is to only interact with people you know and always contact the app directly if you are in doubt.

KEEP READING: FBI Warns Against These Dangerous Scams Spreading in Montana

Using data from the BBB Scam Tracker Annual Risk Report, Stacker identified the most common and costly types of scams.

Ranking States with Most Online Scams

Here's a state-by-state look, using data available from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), ranking states by total amount of money lost to fraud.

Gallery Credit: Scott Clow

LOOK: 8 Domestic Area Codes Scammers Use to Scam Unsuspecting Montanans

According to GoBankingRates, scammers don't JUST use international area codes to swindle people out of their money. They've been using these legitimate American area codes as well.

Gallery Credit: Michelle Heart

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