RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) - The Federal Trade Commission’s fraud and identity theft reporting service shut down earlier this month due to a lapse in government funding, leaving consumers more vulnerable to scammers, according to experts.

“It’s easier for them to do it, because there’s no way to monitor,” said Marcy Thornhill, a social media expert.

The expert warns now is the time to be more vigilant, advising people not to click on unknown links and pay attention to unknown email addresses. Hackers are looking for more than just money, Thornhill said.

“We can see them stealing your account information, your email address and using your email address to reset account passwords to create new accounts using the info they are able to obtain from your email account,” Thornhill said.

This week

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