You may receive a text, phone call, or email stating you overpaid for a service or product and are owed a refund.

Wouldn't that be nice?

These messages often appear to come from companies you may be familiar with such as Amazon or Microsoft.

In reality, scammers are gathering your personal information behind the scenes under the pretense that they will send money directly to your bank.

If you receive an unsolicited message regarding a refund, do not click on any links provided.

The best way to protect yourself is to go to the company's official website yourself, and call the number you find there to ensure you speak with an actual employee.

To stay up to date on current trends in fraud, visit consumerfinance.gov, and remember that if it's too good to be true, it probably is!