Deepak Gupta

Prize, fee, and payment tricks · Also called fake check scam, overpayment scam, mystery shopper scam, cashier's check scam

Fake check and overpayment scam

A fake check scam is when someone sends you a check, often for more than you are owed, and asks you to send part of the money back or on to someone else. The check looks real and the bank may release the funds, but it later bounces and you owe the full amount.

How it works

You are sent a check as a prize payment, a job or mystery shopper assignment, or payment for something you are selling.
The check is for more than expected, and you are told to deposit it and send the difference back or to another person.
Your bank makes the funds available within days, so the money appears in your account.
Later the bank finds the check is fake and takes the full amount back from your account.

Red flags

Someone you do not know sends you a check for more than they owe you.
You are told to send part of the money back or on to someone else.
You are asked to pass the money on by gift card, money order, cryptocurrency, or wire transfer.
A job, mystery shopper role, or prize arrives with a check and instructions to buy gift cards or send money.

If you are targeted

Stop contact: do not send any money back or on to anyone.
Tell your bank about the check before you spend or send any of the funds.
If you already sent money, contact the gift card company, money transfer service, or your bank straight away.
Report it. Our Report a scam page lists where to report in your country, such as ic3.gov and ReportFraud.ftc.gov in the US.

Where to report, by country

Prevention

For individuals

Remember the FTC's point: seeing the funds in your account does not mean the check is good.
Never use money from a check to send gift cards, money orders, cryptocurrency, or wire transfers to anyone who asks.
If a buyer offers to overpay, refuse and ask for the exact amount by a payment method you trust.

For organisations

Banks can warn customers who deposit a large check and then try to send money on quickly that this is a common fake check pattern.

By the numbers

Figures are for the reporting category this scam falls under, not this scam alone.

Overpayment losses reported to the FBI IC3 in 2025

$22.9M

US, 2025, FBI IC3

Real cases

No documented case in the atlas yet. New cases are added as they are sourced.

Delivered through: Email phishing

How official datasets classify it

FBI IC3: Overpayment
FTC: Fake Check Scams

Questions

The money from the check is in my account. Is it safe to use?: Not necessarily. The FTC says banks must make funds available quickly, but that does not mean the check is good. If it bounces, you will have to repay the full amount.
Who pays if a check I deposited turns out to be fake?: Usually you do. When the bank discovers the check is fake it takes the money back, including any amount you already sent on.