Free Grant Scams - How to Avoid Becoming a Victim

federal grant
Tom Conrad asked:


Government grants are a great opportunity to supplement your business revenue with free added capital. These grants can sometimes be all that is between you and being able to achieve your dreams. The only problem is that the majority of the government grant websites out there are deceiving, some even participating in down-right fraud. Not to fear though, there are some easy ways to be able to separate legitimate grant opportunities from the free grant scams.

First you need to know what type of free grant scams there are and how to spot them. The most common of these is “the congratulations on your free grant” phone call. In this version of the scam, someone you do not know gives you an unsolicited phone call out of the blue leading off with information about some grant (that you did not apply for) that you’ve won.

The conversation often runs like this: “Congratulations, you have just been awarded a free $50,000 government grant! To receive your grant, all you have to do is give us your bank account information so we can deposit your grant into the account.”

Unsuspecting people will often give the caller their bank information. Of course, the supposed grant money never shows up in the account. Usually what happens is actually the opposite, with the crooks withdrawing funds before you have a chance to lock down your accounts. These callers will often say that they are phoning from an official-sounding organization (for example “Federal Grant Administrative Office”, which increases their chance that the victim will take the bait and share their banking information. In some cases, the caller will instead say that a “processing fee” is required before the grant can be awarded, or that they will secure an awarded grant for an upfront fee.

There are other versions of the scam, but for the most part, they are all variations of the same theme: the promise of a guaranteed grant approval that, in fact, never materializes. There is actually no such thing as a guaranteed grant. You need to apply in a formal approval process just like everyone else. So if someone is claiming otherwise then they are most likely trying to scam you. Most of all though, remember that if it sounds like it’s too good to be true, chances are it is a free grant scam!

You can find more information about what free grant scams are out there and how to find legitimate grant offers on the Free Grand Scams Review Guide



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