By REBECCA RUTHERFORD
Los Alamos
For the Los Alamos Daily Post

Congratulations. You made it through another week on the Hill, but a scammer still thinks you are going to panic over a fake Apple Pay charge. Hard pass. This week’s scam is aimed at people who use Apple Pay, which in this town is basically everyone who has ever stood in line at Starbucks behind someone paying with their watch like a pro.

Here is how the scam works. You get an email or text that looks like it came from Apple. The notification says there was a suspicious Apple Pay purchase, usually for an alarming amount of money. The message helpfully informs you the charge was blocked, but warns it will go through unless you act right now. Then it gives you a number to call.

That number goes to a scammer. Not Apple. Not Tim Cook. Definitely not the Genius Bar. When you call, fake “support” will tell you they need to secure your account. They might ask for your Apple ID, a verification code, or other personal info. Once they get that, they can lock you out, poke around your account, and make your week way more annoying than it needs to be.

Here is the part scammers hope you don’t know… Apple does not send emails or texts telling you to call a random number about Apple Pay. Real Apple Pay activity shows up in the Wallet app on your phone or watch. That’s where to check it out, not in your inbox. Not by panic dialing a random number.

If you get one of these messages, don’t click anything or call the number. And most importantly – don’t panic! Open your Wallet app like a calm, rational adult and look at your recent transactions. If nothing looks weird, congrats, you just saved yourself from a scam and you can delete the message.

If you actually see a charge you do not recognize, contact Apple through their official website, not a link in a sketchy message. Yes, it takes an extra minute, but that minute is way cheaper than identity theft.

This scam works because it pushes the big red panic button in your brain. “Suspicious charge!” “Act now!” That adrenaline rush is exactly what they are counting on. Slow down. Breathe. You live in a town where people calculate neutron cross sections for fun! You can handle checking your Wallet app before calling Fake Steve from Fake Apple.

If you already called or shared info, change your Apple ID password immediately and call your bank if any financial details were involved. Then maybe go outside, touch a piñon tree, and forgive yourself. These scams are designed to be convincing, and it can be way too easy to fall for them.

Stay sharp, Los Alamos. The hackers are lazy, but persistent – stay calm, don’t panic – and don’t click that link!

Editor’s note: Rebecca Rutherford works in information technology at Los Alamos National Laboratory.