Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel is warning Michiganders to beware of scams related to the expected economic relief package for COVID-19.
In an urgent consumer alert issued Thursday, Nessel said bad actors are trying to trick people into giving out their personal and financial information in order to receive the one time federal stimulus payment.
The state Department of Attorney General has received reports that Michiganders are getting emails that appear official and demand PayPal, bank account, and other financial information in order to receive the federal stimulus payment immediately.
According to the department, a likely form for the phishing scam to take is to ask for a person's bank account information and falsely claim that the federal stimulus payment will then be deposited directly.
The department urged Michiganders to visit the IRS website for information on the details of how the payments will be disbursed – and warned residents not to fall for texts, emails or phone calls from someone claiming to be from the government.
Want to support reporting like this? Consider making a gift to Michigan Radio today.
