American Finasco > Blog > BEWARE! Fraud is Prevalent

It’s true, we are facing unprecedented times. Although this is a time where we should all band together, it is also a time when scams become more prevalent on and offline. This is a time when there are many potential fraud schemes related to economic stimulus programs offered by the U.S. Small Business Administration in response to the Novel Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19). Many of these scams target small business owners during these economically difficult times.  Be on the lookout for grant fraud, loan fraud, and phishing.

For Loans

  • If you are contacted by someone promising to get approval of an SBA loan, but requires any payment up front or offers a high interest bridge loan in the interim, suspect fraud.
  • SBA limits the fees a broker can charge a borrower to 3% for loans $50,000 or less and 2% for loans $50,000 to $1,000,000 with an additional ¼% on amounts over $1,000,000.  Any attempt to charge more than these fees is inappropriate.

Phishing

  • Look out for phishing attacks/scams utilizing the SBA logo.  These may be attempts to obtain your personally identifiable information (PII), to obtain personal banking access, or to install ransomware/malware on your computer.
  • Any email communication from SBA will come from accounts ending with gov.
  • The presence of an SBA logo on a webpage does notguarantee the information is accurate or endorsed by SBA.  Please cross-reference any information you receive with information available at sba.gov.

What to do if you suspect Fraud

Contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 1-866-720-5721 or fill out the Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf- disaster-complaint-form.

Know before you press “Apply”

If you have a question about getting an SBA disaster loan, call 800-659-2955 or send an email to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

If you have questions about other SBA lending products, you can reach the SBA Answer Desk at 800-827-5722 or send an email to answerdesk@sba.gov.

American Finasco has several options to reduce your commercial debt which allows you to stay focused on your business. We provide strategies and take the pressure off business owners who are having a hard time managing their debt. The first step when dealing with creditors is a phone call to American Finasco. We provide our clients effective solutions for business debt relief. Contact us today to get your business on the right track! Visit Contact Us and complete our Online Form for a free consultation or call (800) 299-2909. We look forward to speaking with you.