The Better Business Bureau talks about avoiding April Fools’ Day scams

April Fool’s Day is normally filled with jokes and pranks. However, the Better Business Bureau warns people to be wary of scams this holiday season that might hurt their pockets.

Scammers make the most of April Fools’ Day to focus on unsuspecting people. They typically try to achieve access to key information corresponding to bank accounts and social security numbers. According to Better Business Bureau communications director Jessica Hamlin, leaning over intuition is step one to defense.

“Trust your gut. If it’s too good to be true, it probably is,” Hamlin said, as reported by .

Scammers hope that folks will ignore their suspicions and never watch out enough before they fall into their trap. They often connect with their potential victims by calling or emailing, impersonating corporations in an effort to perform their scheme. Hamlin says this is particularly common on April Fool’s Day. According to Hamlin, staying vigilant prevents fraud, even on the prankster’s favorite day.

“I have personally seen a lot of funny April Fools’ Day jokes from many of the brands I follow and like,” Hamlin said. “It’s very easy to impersonate this account and it basically means that someone has hacked your information and now your information is at risk.”

Another approach to protect your funds? Using bank cards for giant purchases. Cardholders can track transactions, and corporations typically refund money if fraud is proven. This extra step will be certain that fraudsters haven’t got the last laugh.

Furthermore, researching corporations before offering any payments or sensitive information is one other proven and effective method to avoid scammers. Better Business Office ensure detailed company reviews by real customers. A background check before filling out the cash form will be certain that corporations are valid, skilled and responsible if something goes fallacious.

“That’s why it’s a good idea to use a resource like BBB.org and read reviews, each of which has been verified and confirmed to be from a real person who has interacted with the company in question,” Hamlin explained.

It’s fun to hitch in on the joke, but stealing someone’s personal information is not any laughing matter. Protecting necessary documents and access to bank accounts requires common sense and extra security measures.