In its sixth year of collecting scam information, the CyberWyoming Alliance released the annual Wyomingite reported scam statistics from the Hacker’s Brief, a weekly report of scams that are redacted and posted on Facebook groups, sent via email subscriptions, and printed in community minded newspapers. Reports are submitted by Wyoming residents to phishing@cyberwyoming.org and include text, phone, email, mail, and in-person scams to help alert friends, family, and neighbors.

Email remains the primary method scammers use to contact Wyomingites, with 69 reports collected over the past two years. Text messages were the second most common method at 36 reports, followed by phone calls at 5. Social media accounted for 4 reports.

The largest category of scam reports (20) involved fake invoices. Impersonation scams were the second largest category with 9 reports, followed by government impersonation scams at 8. Other frequently reported categories included employment scams (7), fraud alerts (6), free gifts (6), requests for proposals (6), and toll fee scams (6). The most frequently impersonated companies included PayPal (7), Google (5), DocuSign (4), E-ZPass (4), and the Wyoming Department of Transportation (4). Individuals were the most frequently impersonated overall, with 13 reports.

As the most reported scam type, fake invoices typically arrived via email claiming a payment had been processed or an invoice was due. These messages often created urgency to prompt quick action. Some included attachments disguised as invoices, commonly mimicking PayPal, while others directed recipients to call fraudulent customer service numbers or visit fake payment websites. Scammers frequently used mismatched sender domains, impersonated legitimate businesses, or hosted links on unexpected platforms such as Canva to disguise malicious content. These tactics are designed to create confusion and pressure recipients into acting without verification.

Impersonation scams targeted individuals and organizations by posing as trusted contacts. Reports included boss and employee impersonations, such as phishing emails requesting direct deposit changes, fake W-2 verification messages, and attempts to move conversations to personal devices. However, a particularly notable trend involved scammers impersonating clergy members.

Several reports described emails posing as pastors, often using Gmail accounts with names similar to real church leaders. These messages typically asked for “discreet” help, created a sense of urgency, and instructed recipients not to call, which is a tactic meant to prevent verification. In some cases, scammers used real church addresses, websites, scripture references, or slightly altered names to appear legitimate. A common scheme involved requests for gift cards, nearly resulting in financial loss for at least one Wyoming resident. These scams are effective because they exploit trust, authority, and goodwill, and are becoming more convincing through increasingly polished and personalized messaging.

Government impersonation scams were driven in part by a surge in fraudulent text messages posing as the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT). Across multiple reports, Wyoming residents received alarming text messages claiming they had unpaid tickets or citations. These messages frequently threatened consequences such as driver’s license suspension, vehicle registration revocation, additional fines, legal action, and even credit score damage if payment was not made immediately. Many included links to fraudulent payment websites designed to steal financial and personal information. In response, the WYDOT issued a public warning confirming these messages are “smishing” scams. WYDOT said they do not send texts demanding payment, collect ticket fees this way, or operate under the name “DMV.”