VA issues overpayment scam alert for veterans

As the federation honors veterans for their service, the Department of Veterans Affairs is reminding the assemblage to enactment alert to a increasing threat, the VA overpayment scam.

Reports amusement that fraudsters are contacting veterans done text, email and telephone calls, pretending to beryllium VA employees. They assertion you were overpaid connected your benefits and indispensable nonstop wealth oregon banking details to close the issue.

These criminals often marque their messages look authoritative with VA logos, ceremonial wording and adjacent fake caller IDs. Once they summation your trust, they propulsion for speedy payment, hoping you enactment earlier verifying. Staying informed and cautious is the champion mode to support your benefits and your identity.

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Scammers are claiming veterans were overpaid connected their benefits by impersonating VA employees. (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)

How to spot a VA overpayment scam

Be connected alert for these reddish flags:

• Messages demanding urgent payment, particularly by gift card, ligament transportation oregon cryptocurrency.
• Requests for your VA login oregon password.
• Emails oregon texts with links that don't pb to VA.gov.
• Caller ID spoofing showing "VA" oregon "Debt Center" to look official.
• Messages oregon letters that lack elaborate explanations oregon relationship numbers.

If you spot immoderate of these, don't engage; instead, verify the connection straight done VA.gov oregon by calling the VA's authoritative number.

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Legitimate VA communications ever nonstop veterans to VA.gov oregon the authoritative Debt Management Center.  (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)

 How existent VA overpayments work

When the VA determines an existent overpayment, it sends a ceremonial missive explaining the magnitude and your options to entreaty oregon acceptable up a outgo plan. You'll ne'er beryllium told to wage done substance oregon third-party apps, and you'll ne'er beryllium asked to stock login credentials oregon banking info extracurricular VA.gov.

Real VA notices ever nonstop you to authoritative channels like VA.gov oregon the Debt Management Center (1-800-827-0648). If thing feels off, it astir apt is, truthful ever verify earlier taking action.

To support your hard-earned VA benefits enactment alert and verify messages done authoritative channels.  (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)

Top ways to support yourself from VA overpayment scams

Stay up of scammers by pursuing these elemental but almighty steps to support your VA benefits.

1) Verify done your authoritative VA.gov account

Whenever you person a announcement astir an overpayment, log successful to your VA.gov relationship straight alternatively of clicking immoderate nexus oregon responding to a message. The tract shows your existent balance, outgo presumption and immoderate existent debts.

2) Use authoritative VA outgo channels

If you observe a morganatic debt, grip it lone done VA's authoritative outgo options. Call the Debt Management Center astatine 1-800-827-0648 oregon marque payments done your unafraid VA.gov dashboard. Avoid sending funds done apps, ligament transfers, oregon prepaid cards arsenic the VA volition ne'er inquire for those.

3) Never stock your login information

Your VA login and password are similar your location keys. The VA volition ne'er inquire for them, not by phone, email, oregon text. Anyone who requests them is simply a scammer. If you deliberation your credentials were compromised, alteration your password instantly and enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) if available.

Consider utilizing a password manager, which securely stores and generates analyzable passwords, reducing the hazard of password reuse. 

Next, spot if your email has been exposed successful past breaches. Our No. 1 password manager prime includes a built-in breach scanner that checks whether your email code oregon passwords person appeared successful known leaks. If you observe a match, instantly alteration immoderate reused passwords and unafraid those accounts with new, unsocial credentials. 

Check retired the champion expert-reviewed password managers of 2025 at CyberGuy.com.

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4) Avoid suspicious links and attachments

Fraudsters often embed fake links successful messages that look existent astatine archetypal glance. Hover implicit a nexus earlier clicking to preview the URL; if it doesn't commencement with "https://www.va.gov," it's fake. Be arsenic cautious with attachments, arsenic they tin instal malware designed to bargain your idiosyncratic data.

The champion mode to safeguard yourself from malicious links that instal malware, perchance accessing your backstage information, is to person beardown antivirus bundle installed connected each your devices. This extortion tin besides alert you to phishing emails and ransomware scams, keeping your idiosyncratic accusation and integer assets safe.

Get my picks for the champion 2025 antivirus extortion winners for your Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices at CyberGuy.com.

5) Use a data removal service

Data brokers often people your name, telephone fig and adjacent seasoned presumption online, accusation scammers usage to people you. Personal information removal services tin automatically petition information removals from hundreds of broker sites, reducing your vulnerability and lowering the likelihood of being targeted.

While nary work tin warrant the implicit removal of your information from the internet, a information removal work is truly a astute choice. They aren’t cheap, and neither is your privacy. These services bash each the enactment for you by actively monitoring and systematically erasing your idiosyncratic accusation from hundreds of websites. It’s what gives maine bid of caput and has proven to beryllium the astir effectual mode to erase your idiosyncratic information from the internet. By limiting the accusation available, you trim the hazard of scammers cross-referencing information from breaches with accusation they mightiness find connected the acheronian web, making it harder for them to people you.

6) Watch retired for antithetic outgo methods

Scammers emotion untraceable transactions. Any petition for outgo done acquisition cards, Bitcoin, prepaid debit cards, oregon ligament transfers is an instant reddish flag. The VA does not and volition not usage these methods to cod payments.

7) Limit your societal media exposure

Scammers sometimes stitchery accusation from societal networks to marque messages look much personal. Review your friends and followers, tighten privateness settings and deliberation doubly earlier posting details astir your subject work oregon VA benefits.

8) Report suspected fraud immediately

If you deliberation idiosyncratic tried to scam you, interaction the VA straight astatine 1-800-827-1000. You tin besides study incidents at VSAFE.gov oregon call (833) 38V-SAFE (833-388-7233). Reporting rapidly helps support others successful the seasoned community.

Kurt's cardinal takeaways

This Veterans Day is simply a clip to bespeak connected service, sacrifice and strength, and that includes protecting what you person earned. Scammers whitethorn beryllium persistent, but staying alert and utilizing authoritative VA resources gives you the precocious hand. Your benefits correspond much than money; they are designation of your service. Keep them safe, enactment skeptical of abrupt messages and verify everything earlier you act.

How tin exertion companies and the authorities bash a amended occupation of protecting veterans online? Let america cognize your thoughts successful the comments below. Let america cognize by penning to america at CyberGuy.com.

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