Do Not Send Money Based on Any Unsolicited Message.
A message arrives — by phone, email, or pop-up on your screen — claiming that you have received a refund you were not supposed to get, or that your account was accidentally credited with too large an amount. To correct the error, you need to send the difference back. The message may appear to come from a company you recognize — Amazon, Microsoft, your bank, Medicare, or the IRS. There is no overpayment. There is no accidental refund. The entire premise is invented to get you to send money.
Two Versions You Are Most Likely to See
The first version is the fake check scheme. Someone sends you a real-looking check — sometimes for several hundred dollars more than you are supposedly owed — and asks you to deposit it and send back the difference. The check clears initially because banks are required to make funds available before the check fully clears. Two to three weeks later, the check is returned as fraudulent, the full amount is reversed from your account, and the money you sent is gone.
The second version is the screen-based overpayment. A pop-up or email claims your account was accidentally credited — sometimes $300, sometimes $2,000 — and that you need to call a number or log into a provided link to initiate the return. The link steals your banking credentials. The phone number connects to a scammer who requests a wire transfer or gift cards.
Sources: FTC Data Spotlight Aug 2025 — False Alarm Real Scam; FTC Aug 2026 Refund/Recovery Alert; ScamWatchHQ Aug 2026; HousingWire AI Fraud Report July 2026.
The Rules That Stop Every Version of This Scheme
No company or government agency will contact you out of the blue to tell you that you owe money back due to an overpayment error and ask you to wire it, send gift cards, or use a payment app. Legitimate refund corrections are handled automatically — debited from your account or adjusted on a future statement — without requiring any action from you by phone or screen.
If you receive any message about an overpayment or unexpected refund, contact the organization directly using a phone number you look up yourself — not one provided in the message. Do not click any link, call any number given to you, or deposit any check that arrives alongside such a claim. Report the attempt at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
With care,
Mike Bridges
Founder, The O55 Report