No one likes waiting in airport security lines. To speed things up, some people opt to get TSA PreCheck. Scammers know this and send emails that look like they're from TSA PreCheck — but they’re not. The emails want you to click a link that takes you to a scam website that only looks like the official site — but it’s not. If you pay to “enroll” or “renew” your TSA PreCheck, you may not even realize you’ve paid a scammer until you get to the airport for your next trip. But there are ways to spot these scams.
If you’re applying for TSA PreCheck for the first time, you don’t pay the application fee online. To get PreCheck, you complete the application and pay in person at a TSA enrollment center. Again: you don’t pay online. Only a scammer will ask you to pay online to enroll.
If you already have TSA PreCheck, you can renew and pay in person or take care of both online. The real TSA even sends renewal reminder emails out. But to avoid a scam, start your renewal at tsa.gov/precheck instead of clicking a link. A scammer’s link will take you to a scam site that looks real, but if you pay and give your information, the scammer will steal it.
To avoid scammers impersonating TSA PreCheck:

• Don't click links in unexpected emails or text messages, no matter how real they look.
• Don’t be rushed. If someone insists that you to pay right away, chances are that’s a scammer.
• Start at tsa.gov/precheck. Typing in that URL yourself is the best way to avoid the scam. And remember that all TSA PreCheck sites are .gov sites, not a .com.

Tell the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov if you think you spotted this scam. And learn how to recognize phishing scams to keep scammers from stealing your money or identity.

With the holiday season approaching, you might be looking for extra funds to cover things like gifts and trips. But if you’re planning to borrow the money, make sure a payday loan isn’t your first — or only — choice. Sure, you might get the money fast, but the added fees and interest could make the payback really slow — or nearly impossible.
Payday loans offer quick cash for a fee to borrow the money for a short time. You walk out with the money you needed and a plan to pay it back in a few weeks. Easy, right? Not exactly.
The cost of taking out a payday loan racks up fast. The fees and interest alone could be in the triple digits. And if you can’t pay the loan back right away (which happens often), you might need to do a rollover — or pay extra fees to extend the loan. In the end, you’ll still owe the original loan amount and fees plus the new ones, too.
Before you get a payday loan, ask yourself: Are there any less expensive (and less risky) options to get the money? Maybe you ask for more time to pay your bills or see if you can borrow it from family or friends. Credit unions typically offer loans with lower interest rates than banks or other lenders. Check to see if a personal loan or “payday alternative loan” is a better choice. No matter what choice you make, make sure you know the real cost of any loan before you sign, and learn more about payday lending.
If you think a payday lender has been dishonest, report it to your state attorney general and the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. 

People are reporting getting calls (and calls) (and more calls) about their supposed “loan application.” Only they hadn’t applied for a loan. So what’s going on?
When people don’t pick up, the callers leave messages saying the imaginary “loan application” is on hold because the business needs more information, so please call back. The calls seem urgent — and they’re persistent. People report getting calls in bursts of anywhere from five to even 20 a day, all from different numbers, all with the same story. But there never was a loan application. It’s a tactic that some dishonest companies are using to offer loans.
If you get a call like this:

• Don’t press a number to “unsubscribe.” That only lets the dishonest company know your number is good. Instead, just hang up.
• Use call blocking to stop calls before they reach you. Learn how at How to Block Unwanted Calls. For your mobile phone, find a list of call-blocking apps at ctia.org, a website for the U.S. wireless communications industry.
• Don’t give information to businesses you don’t know, even if they seem to know you. That could be a set up to get your personal information.
• Register your cell and home phone for free at the National Do Not Call Registry. Registration never expires and is designed to stop unwanted sales calls from companies that follow the law. But it doesn’t block calls and won’t stop calls from scammers — though the scam calls are a lot easier to spot if scammers are the main ones left calling to sell you something.

If you’ve gotten calls like these, report unwanted calls at DoNotCall.gov.

​Have you ever gotten a text or email warning you that something is wrong with an account online? Maybe it says your streaming account is about to be suspended unless you respond quickly. It might even have a link that will supposedly fix your account’s problems. The message looks real. But is it?
Your first instinct might be to click to solve your problems. Don’t click. There’s likely nothing wrong. Instead, it might be a phishing scam. That’s when scammers pose as well-known companies to get you to give up sensitive information via text or email. A phishing email might:

• say they’ve noticed some suspicious activity or log-in attempts — they haven’t
• claim there’s a problem with your account or your payment information — there isn’t
• say you need to confirm some personal or financial information — you don’t

While real companies might send you emails or text messages, they won’t do things like send a link to update your payment information. Only scammers do that. Even opening a link in an unexpected text or email can expose you to scammers — even if you don’t enter any sensitive info.
So, don’t click on any links in unexpected emails or texts. If you’re concerned, contact the company directly using a link you already use or a phone number you know is correct. And if you think you’ve given someone your Social Security, credit card, or bank account number, report it at IdentityTheft.gov and get a recovery plan. If you clicked on a link in an unexpected email, update your security software and run a scan to look for viruses and malware.
Then report the phishing scam. Tell the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, forward suspicious texts to SPAM (7726), and forward suspicious emails to [email protected].

​Scammers will say just about anything — in any language — to separate you from your hard-earned money. And when it comes to student loan forgiveness, they’ll target Spanish speakers with false promises of debt relief help.
The FTC just sued USA Student Debt Relief (USASDR) for advertising and signing up people for fake student loan forgiveness plans with super-low monthly payments. The FTC says USASDR targeted borrowers living in Puerto Rico by pretending to be affiliated with the Department of Education and posting fake testimonials and reviews online.
Instead of helping, USASDR pressured people to quickly sign a super-long, difficult-to-read contract (completely in English, even though the sales pitch was often in Spanish). Once you signed up, the company (illegally) billed you an upfront fee, and then started charging you monthly — payments you thought were going towards your loans (but weren’t). Instead, all the fees went into USASDR’s pockets.  To keep their scheme going, the FTC says USASDR sometimes changed the contact information in your FSA account so your (real) lender couldn’t reach you. 
Want to avoid student loan forgiveness scams? Here are some things to know:

• Scammers often lie and say they’re affiliated with the Department of Education. Make sure you’re working with a federal student loan servicer that’s listed on the Department of Education’s website. (And use the contact information listed there, too — scammers can spoof the numbers and names of legit servicers.)
• Scammers say they need your FSA ID login information. Never give out this information. If a scammer gets your FSA ID, they could cut you off from your loan servicer — or even steal your identity.
• Scammers will tell you to sign contracts in a language you don’t understand. You have a right to know what you’re paying for before a company charges you. Don’t sign a contract you don’t understand, whether or not it’s written in another language.

Get free help managing your federal loans at StudentAid.gov/repay. Got private loans? Go straight to your loan servicer for help.