Fake FTC Call Says Your Phone Number Will Be Deactivated: It’s a Scam

If a caller says they’re from the FTC and your phone number will be deactivated because it’s tied to scams in another country, hang up. The FTC warned on October 22, 2026, that this is a scam. The script moves you to a fake police officer and ends with a demand for money. A real FTC employee will never threaten to disconnect your phone or ask you to send money.

What the FTC is warning about

The FTC calls this the latest twist on FTC impersonators. Someone claiming to be an FTC official calls and says a phone was registered under your name and number and is being used to commit scams in another country. The caller reads off a badge ID, which is fake. If you don’t cooperate, they threaten to deactivate your phone number.

To make the story sound real, the caller transfers you to a fake police officer to file a report. If you hesitate, they may have you call the police department back yourself and tell you what to search online to find the number. It feels like checking the story. But the people who answer are part of the scam.

They ask for your ID and other personal information for the “report” and tell you to keep everything secret. Later, they say you are under arrest for the scams linked to your number and must go to another country, unless you send money for a security deposit.

How the call goes

Based on the FTC alert, the scam moves in steps:

• A caller says they work for the FTC and gives a badge number.
• They say a phone in your name is being used for scams abroad.
• They threaten to deactivate your phone number.
• You are transferred to a “police officer,” or told what to search for to find a “police” number.
• You are asked for ID and personal details and told to keep it secret.
• You are told you are under arrest and must send money for a security deposit.

Red flags

The FTC lists what a real FTC employee will never do:

• Ask you to send money, or connect you to someone who says to send money.
• Threaten to disconnect your phone.
• Tell you to keep your conversations secret.
• Text you a photo of their employee ID to “verify” who they are.

Social Security has warned about a related trick. In a July 29, 2026, notice, it said legitimate companies and other agencies cannot transfer your call directly to Social Security or its Office of the Inspector General. A call that hands you off from one agency to another is a warning sign in itself.

What to do instead

• Hang up. Don’t stay on the line to argue or explain.
• Don’t search for a number the caller suggests. Look up your local police department’s number yourself, from an official source you choose.
• Don’t share ID or personal information with anyone who called you.
• Tell someone you trust. Secrecy is part of the script.
• Check with your phone company if you are worried about your number. Use the number on your bill.

If your parent got this call

• If any money was sent, call the bank or payment company right away.
• Report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
• If money was lost, report it at ic3.gov and call the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 833-FRAUD-11 (833-372-8311), Monday to Friday, 10am to 6pm ET.

This scam keeps a person on the phone across several fake handoffs. FamilyDefender checks unknown calls to an older parent while they happen and can warn the parent and alert family when a call looks risky.