Male VO: Oh No. You receive an urgent e-mail or phone call. A friend or family member needs money fast.

Maybe they’re in the hospital. Maybe they’ve been mugged. Or they were traveling abroad and thrown in jail.

Whatever the situation, their safety depends on you sending them the money they need right now.

Female VO: Stop. Slow down. Even though it seems like you need to act right away, first you need to confirm that you’re not dealing with a scam artist.

Scammers often hack e-mail accounts and even make phone calls to trick people into sending them money.

BEFORE you send any money in response to a request, ask the person a question that only your actual friend or family member would know the answer to.

You can also tell them that you’ll call them back at a phone number that you KNOW is genuine.

So, when it comes to emergency scams, exercise doubt and check it out, at FTC.gov. A tip from the Federal Trade Commission, the nation’s consumer protection agency.