I was lied to. I don’t really know how this happened, but I had about $50 withdrawn from my bank account for so-called services that I didn’t approve of or see. Long story short, I had to freeze my card, but eventually my bank refunded the amount.
But not all scams have a happy ending. Today, more people are being scammed than ever before.
In fact, according to a 2025 Pew Research Center survey, 73% of U.S. adults confirmed experiencing at least one online scam or attack, and most receive scam calls, text messages, and emails at least weekly.
The Pew Research Center reports: “Internet fraud and other cybercrimes are increasing dramatically, with losses reported to the FBI reaching a record $16.6 billion in 2024. The federal government, banks and companies are sounding the alarm.”
Many popular brands are often used by attackers to create phishing scams, with Walmart topping the list in the first quarter of 2023.
As a result, Walmart has been the target of a massive scam that has recently attracted attention in Washington.
The FCC’s Bureau of Enforcement requires SK Teleco to immediately stop fraudulent phone calls impersonating Walmart employees. Image source: Shutterstock” loading=”eager” height=”540″ width=”960″ class=”yf-1gfnohs loader”/>
The FCC’s Bureau of Enforcement requires SK Teleco to immediately stop fraudulent phone calls impersonating Walmart employees. Image source &col; Shutterstock
On December 2, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Enforcement Bureau required voice service provider SK Teleco to immediately stop fraudulent robocalls posing as Walmart employees.
If the company doesn’t take action to permanently block these and similar scam calls from passing through its network, it risks being cut off from U.S. communications networks, according to an FCC press release.
According to the FCC report, the scam is based on an artificial intelligence voice claiming to be “Carl” or “Emma” calling “from Walmart” and claiming that someone pre-authorized a PlayStation 5 order for $919.45 from someone’s Walmart account.
The voice will further guide customers, asking them to press 1 or call back if they want to cancel their order or contact a live operator.
Once consumers are connected with a live operator, they are asked to provide personally identifiable information, such as their Social Security number.
“It is illegal for scammers and thieves to use our phone networks to defraud consumers or steal personal data, and voice service providers must be part of the solution. While most providers understand this responsibility, we will not tolerate those who turn a blind eye and allow suspicious robocallers onto their networks,” said FCC Chairman Brendan Carr.
The FCC cited data from industry regulator Industry Traceback Group, which tracked 29 robocalls from SK Telecom, and data from third-party robocall interception service YouMail, which estimated it made nearly 8 million robocalls.
The FCC said industry tracking groups notified SK Teleco of “illegal robocall traffic” and urged an investigation, but the company did not respond.
The commission further stated that it is illegal to make calls to mobile phones and play artificial or pre-recorded voice messages without reasonable urgency or prior consent.
RELATED: Google, Apple, Microsoft under investigation in fraud crackdown
“If SK Teleco fails to act quickly to prevent spoofed calls, the FCC will require all other providers to no longer accept call traffic from SK Teleco. SK Teleco has 48 hours to effectively reduce the illegal traffic and 14 days to take steps to prevent such traffic from recurring on its network,” the FCC noted.
“Such an order would effectively isolate the company from the nation’s communications networks, and the FCC has imposed such penalties only a handful of times in its history,” Cord Cutters News wrote.
“Walmart scams don’t actually come from Walmart or Walmart associates, but from scammers who use the company as a familiar guise to trick victims,” Robokiller wrote, offering advice on how to spot red flags.
According to the tech company, which offers a mobile app that uses artificial intelligence to block spam, robocalls and scam calls for consumers and businesses, there are several popular and dangerous scams at Walmart.
unsolicited communications
“Too good to be true” deal
urgency and pressure
Request personal information or payment Source: Killer Robot
Various posts on Reddit reveal similar scams, and user comments point to the same red flags. For example, one post from 10 months ago described how an alleged Walmart representative called them and said someone was trying to use their account to purchase a $1,000 computer.
“When I asked them for the store number, they couldn’t answer the question. When they answered on the first ring, I was skeptical because the Walmart I called didn’t answer their calls right away during peak hours. Beware of this scam,” read the post from user Safe-Asmination-1537.
According to Robokiller’s 2023 study, phone scams (including calls and text messages) cost Americans $46 billion in the first half of 2023 alone.
Related: 5 Things You Should Know About Cyberattacks in 2025
This article was originally published by TheStreet on December 3, 2025, and first appeared in the Retail section. Click here to add TheStreet as your preferred source.
The FCC’s Bureau of Enforcement requires SK Teleco to immediately stop fraudulent phone calls impersonating Walmart employees. Image source: Shutterstock” loading=”eager” height=”540″ width=”960″ class=”yf-1gfnohs loader”/>
