CINCINNATI — Fraudsters are tricking consumers into believing they are on official sites for passport or visa application renewals when they're actually on impostor websites. These scams specifically target travelers in a rush during peak travel season, banking on the fact that people will overlook warning signs when pressed for time.
Many travelers aren't realizing they've landed on unofficial websites and are paying $88 for documents that should be free.
"They're going to take advantage of you for the quickness and the urgency of what you're trying to do," said Christine Hayley, VP of Operations at the Better Business Bureau.
The Better Business Bureau has identified websites like "uspassportandvisa.org" that are fooling consumers. These impostor sites use similar colors and imagery to appear legitimate compared to real government websites.
Here's how you can tell if the website your using is legitimate, or a possible scam:
Travelers rushing to renew their passports are missing the fine print stating these sites are not government agencies.
"The website will ask for your personal information, your name, your birth date, your Social Security number and more, and you put that information in, then they ask for a fee," Hayley said. "They will say that they'll email the confirmation to you. Well, when you receive the email confirmation, it's just a completed form of the information that you put in there that you take to the Department of State to get your passport."
What's happening is that consumers are paying for forms they could fill out for free on the official U.S. Department of State's website. Even worse, they're handing over sensitive personal information to potential scammers.
How to protect yourself:
Verify the website address: Always check that you're on an official government site with a ".gov" domain.
Look for the .gov domain: "Does it say .gov? The .gov is going to be where you can go to get your passports," Hayley said.
Plan ahead: Check with the U.S. Department of State for current processing times so you're not rushed into making a costly mistake.
Research before sharing: Before providing any personal information online, verify the site's legitimacy through resources like the Better Business Bureau's Scam Tracker.
These fraudulent websites don't just take your money – they collect critical personal information like names, birth dates, and Social Security numbers, putting you at risk for potential identity theft.
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