Medicare scam patterns to watch during enrollment season
NoticeOfChange is not law enforcement and does not contact an agency, company, or anyone else on your behalf. We explain publicly documented scam patterns so a family can recognize what a call, message, letter, or request resembles. Each description below comes directly from the cited official source.
What official Medicare and Social Security pages say
Medicare states: “Medicare will never call you to sell you anything or visit you at your home.” Medicare.gov source, verified 2026-08-01.
Social Security states: “Social Security will never ask for sensitive or personal information through social media, email, or text message.” SSA source, verified 2026-08-01.
What does the Medicare-card impersonation scam look like?
The official description documents how the approach begins and the request or claim that identifies it:
“They’ll say you need a ‘new’ or ‘updated’ Medicare card and ask for your Medicare, bank account, or credit card number.”
Source: Federal Trade Commission · verified 2026-08-01
What does the Government impersonation scam look like?
The official description documents how the approach begins and the request or claim that identifies it:
“A government impersonation scam often starts with a call, email, text, or social media message from someone who says they’re with a government agency.”
Source: Federal Trade Commission · verified 2026-08-01
What does the Grandparent or family-emergency scam look like?
The official description documents how the approach begins and the request or claim that identifies it:
“And once the scammer makes you think they’re your grandson and in trouble, they pressure you to quickly send them money.”
Source: Federal Trade Commission · verified 2026-08-01
What does the Tech-support scam look like?
The official description documents how the approach begins and the request or claim that identifies it:
“The person on the phone says they’re from a well-known company like Microsoft or Apple. And they tell you about viruses or other malware on your computer.”
Source: Federal Trade Commission · verified 2026-08-01
What does the Prize, sweepstakes, or lottery scam look like?
The official description documents how the approach begins and the request or claim that identifies it:
“You get a call, email, or letter saying you won a sweepstakes, lottery, or prize — like an iPad, a new car, or something else. But you know it’s a scam because of what they do next: they ask you to pay money or give them your account information to get the prize.”
Source: Federal Trade Commission · verified 2026-08-01
What does the Social Security benefit-suspension scam look like?
The official description documents how the approach begins and the request or claim that identifies it:
“The Social Security Office of the Inspector General has received reports that Social Security beneficiaries have received letters through the U.S. Mail stating their payments will be suspended or discontinued unless they call a phone number referenced in the letter.”
Source: Social Security Office of the Inspector General · verified 2026-08-01
Common questions
Does NoticeOfChange report a suspected scam for me?
No. NoticeOfChange is not law enforcement and does not contact an agency, company, or anyone else on your behalf. We explain publicly documented patterns so a family can recognize what a message resembles.
What does the Medicare-card impersonation pattern look like?
They’ll say you need a ‘new’ or ‘updated’ Medicare card and ask for your Medicare, bank account, or credit card number.
Where do these scam descriptions come from?
Each description comes from the official source linked beside it. The page also shows when that source was last verified in the NoticeOfChange registry.