Airline customer service scams targeting frustrated fliers [Video]

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) – The holiday travel rush is underway, and if people bump into problems at the airport, experts say scammers could be waiting for them to post their complaints on social media.

“Don’t reach out on social media,” said Jamie Harding with AARP Alabama. “You really don’t know who you’re dealing with, and it could be anyone.”

If travelers tweet about airline cancellations or delays, companies are not the only ones reading it.

AARP stresses scammers are pretending to be customer service providers, using fake social media accounts to offer help.

“It’s very easy for fake accounts to be set up on social media,” Harding said. “Unfortunately, there is not enough monitoring of this by any of the social media companies and it’s a real problem.”

It becomes a bigger “problem” when scammers can convince fliers to hand over their booking confirmation number, phone number or bank account information.

The …