PIERRE, S.D. (Legal Newsline) - South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley warned South Dakotans on Wednesday about scams targeting the users of Green Dot MoneyPak cards.
Most Green Dot MoneyPak users purchase the products to add money to a PayPal account without using a bank account, reload other prepaid cards or make same-day payments to major companies. While Green Dot MoneyPak cards are legitimate products when used for their intended purposes, the products have multiple benefits for scam artists.
Green Dot MoneyPak cards can only be purchased with cash, which means consumers never need to disclose their personal or financial information to a retail cashier or to make a payment. Anyone with the 14-digit number found on the back of the card can take funds from the card without needing to show up at an office to claim the funds.
Green Dot MoneyPak scams work in many ways, including phone calls that imply consumers are behind on a bill, someone posing as an IRS agent collecting on back taxes that must be paid right away or a caller who promises a sweepstakes win that requires prize money be added to the card. In all of the scams, the intended victims are told to buy a Green Dot MoneyPak card, load the requested amount and give the number on the back of the card to the scam artists. The scammers will then take money off of the card.
Jackley's Consumer Protection Division received multiple calls from South Dakota consumers who were targeted by Green Dot MoneyPak scams.
S.D. AG warns of Green Dot MoneyPak scam
