Remember the movie “Catch Me If You Can?” Casey Bond talked to real life former con man Frank Abagnale Jr. — memorably played by Leonardo DiCaprio — about why millennials fall for scams more than seniors do, defying stereotypes. Their chat is worth a read, but it wasn’t Casey’s only dive into scams this week, either. Read on for how to tell when a call “from the IRS” is really a scam, plus ways to make therapy less expensive, career advice from Latinas in politics and how to spot compromised Sephora reviews.

Janie

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You’re listening to your voicemail messages, and an alarming recording begins:

Enforcement agencies to suspend your Social Security number on an immediate basis, as we have received suspicious trails of information in your name. The moment you receive this message, I need you to get back to me on my department division toll free number … Verify the last four digits of your Social Security number when you call to better assist you, and if I don’t hear a call from you, we will have to issue an arrest warrant under your name.

Sound familiar? This exact phone message is one many people have received lately. It’s frightening, it’s confusing ― and it’s a scam. An FTC expert told Casey how to tell if a caller purporting to be from Social Security, the IRS, Google or any other organization is real.

How to tell if a phone call is a scam

A global HuffPost project on everything you ever wanted to know about therapy, whether you've been once or 100 times.

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Deal with it

The value of a good review has not gone unnoticed by beauty brands, and to boost their ratings, they’ve effectively infiltrated the system at retail sites like Sephora. In 2018, for example, the brand Sunday Riley asked employees to write fake reviews, and companies often give away products in hopes of getting a positive review. Those positive reviews can even turn into entire marketing campaigns. Here’s how it works — and how you can spot legitimate product feedback.

How can you tell if a Sephora review is trustworthy?

Pro Tip:

Bringing your tropical houseplants indoors for the winter soon? Don’t forget that you should sloooowly transition them from outside, lest they “freak out” with plant shock and leaf drop, according to Kate Karam, editorial director for Monrovia Nursery Co. in Azuza, California. Karam recommends giving them plenty of time to acclimate, such as bringing them in at night and taking them back out during the day until they’ve grown accustomed to being indoors again.