Scams occur throughout the year, but criminals often take advantage of the “season” to trick you into providing your personal or financial information to them as part of a scam.
Summer scams target vacationers and homeowners with fake rental listings, deceptive vacation offers, and bogus home repair services. Other prevalent tactics include phishing emails for fake ticket sales, and fraudulent summer job offers that steal personal information.
Common Summer Seasonal Scams:
- Vacation Rental Fraud: Scammers create fake listings on platforms like Airbnb, Vrbo, or Facebook Marketplace, offering low prices to trick users into paying deposits for non-existent properties.
- "Free" Vacation Scams: Scammers claim you have won a free vacation but demand fees for taxes or security, which are actually used to steal personal info or money. *Remember, you should never pay for a prize you have won!
- Ticket & Event Scams: Fraudulent websites or social media posts offer tickets for concerts, festivals, or popular tours (e.g., Taylor Swift, Beyoncé), sometimes using AI to create convincing, fake, or duplicate ticket sales.
- Home Service & Repair Scams: Fraudsters may pose as air conditioning repairmen, driveway sealers, or landscapers, demanding upfront payments for work that is never completed.
- Summer Job Scams: Fake job postings promise high pay for little work, aiming to steal social security numbers, banking info, or money for "training materials".
How to Protect Yourself:
- Use Secure Payment Methods: Use credit cards for transactions, which offer better fraud protection than debit cards, wire transfers, or gift cards.
- Verify Listings: Research vacation rentals thoroughly, check reviews, and avoid deals that seem too good to be true.
- Don't Click Links: Do not click links in unexpected emails or texts regarding deliveries or services.
- Verify Official Sites: If you receive a notice about a utility or service, look up the official phone number yourself to verify, rather than using the contact info in the message.
- Beware of High Pressure: Scammers often push for immediate action.
Please do not hesitate to contact our office for assistance if you have been scammed or have questions about avoiding or reporting a seasonal scam. The Erie County Division of Consumer Protection can be reached by phone at 716-858-1987 or via email to consumerprotection@erie.gov. Consumer Protection complaints can also be submitted through our website.
Additional Resources:
Better Business Bureau
Top 5 vacation scams to watch for when making travel plans
Erie County Division of Consumer Protection - Home Improvement/Repair Scams
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) –
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) –
Hello, Summer. Goodbye, Scammers.
Moving this summer? Watch for rental scams
Identity Theft Resource Center - Scams & Alerts
New York State Attorney General - Summer Scams: Don’t Get Burned
New York State Department of State - CONSUMER ALERT: New York Department of State’s Division of Consumer Protection Warns New Yorkers to Beware of Event Ticket Scams
USA.gov - Types of Scams and Fraud
U.S. Department of State - Scams
