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Fighting fraud

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Kathryn R.C. Reaves
  • 20th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
Fraud is wrongful or criminal deception intended to result in financial or personal gain.

It can take place at various levels from someone lying to acquire increased entitlements or the falsifying of temporary duty documents, to a contracting representative awarding contracts under the table, said Special Agent Kathleen Adams, Air Force Office of Special Investigations Detachment 212 chief of criminal investigations.

Fraud can also include the theft or falsifying of checks, sale of fake or counterfeit products, identity theft and sexual extortion (sextortion).

Individuals of all demographics are susceptible to becoming a victim of fraud, but service members may be an especially appealing target for extortion criminals.

“Sometimes criminals look at the fact you’re a U.S. service member (and) they know you’re going to be getting a paycheck … so they target service members to fall victim to their scheme,” said Adams.

According to an AFOSI publication on cybersecurity, service members also make attractive targets because they are held to high standards of conduct and may have knowledge of military tactics or operational security items of interest to adversaries.

Military members and their families can take precautions to reduce the likelihood of victimization.

One step they can take is to blend into the community, said Adams. This can be done on social media or in the local community by restricting access to military-related photos and information, minimize a person’s footprint into the area criminals target.

Individuals should also be alert when meeting new people on social media or dating sites to prevent becoming a victim of sextortion.

Sometimes criminals are able to break down barriers of people they meet via dating sites or social media by fostering a false relationship, said Adams. Those seeking relationships or companionship tend to get caught up in these situations.

Explicit images or sensitive information may then be shared in confidence with the criminal who threatens to expose the material for profit.

When an individual targeted Airman 1st Class Scott Williams, 20th Logistics Readiness Squadron individual protective equipment apprentice, the Airman immediately reached out to AFOSI Det 212.

The offender had communicated with Williams for several days after meeting on a dating service, claiming to be a young woman and only communicating via text. Williams then received a message supposedly from her father. The message stated the girl was underage and money was demanded under the threat that Williams would be turned over to the police.

After contacting the detachment, Williams said he had a positive experience with resolving the issue.

“They work with you really well, especially through that kind of thing,” said Williams. “If you ever get threatened by someone, or you get put into a situation (where) you feel like you might be in danger, just go to OSI.”

Even after returning home from a deployment or TDY, service members must take precautions to protect themselves and their families, and hold others accountable. These precautions include remaining alert of potential fraud and reporting suspicious activity to the appropriate authorities, such as AFOSI.

“You’ve just got to be very aware of what you’re doing and take every measure to keep yourself safe,” said Williams. “Just be cautious.”