MADISON, Wis. (WRN) — Scammers may be constantly changing their methods to trick you, but there’s usually one common sign that they’re trying to steal your money.
Wisconsin Consumer Protection director Michelle Reinen says criminals want to make sure your money isn’t being tracked, and that means strange payment methods.
“If you’re asked to wire money, or make a payment through a peer-to-peer app, or again through cryptocurrency, those are all things that need to be questioned because of their traceability, but they’re not traditional forms of payment when you are actually interacting with a legitimate business,” Reinen said.
Other methods you should watch out for is people trying to get you to use gift cards or prepaid credit cards, or sending cash through the mail.