Billions upon billions are flying out of Washington and little is making it to the people who need it and now a whole new industry has grown up around the people’s concern for their future and their livelihood.

With big banks and automakers getting government bailouts, it’s no surprise that consumers would want a hand, too.

Scammers are capitalizing on that.

Some are hard at work trying to trick individuals into paying for access for government grants, and the Federal Trade Commission is urging consumers to be careful.

Phony Web sites and scam e-mails have “mushroomed up overnight,” offering to help consumers qualify for economic-stimulus payments, said Eileen Harrington, acting director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, during an online news conference yesterday.

The sites ask consumers to provide personal details or a small payment to cover shipping to get information on how to apply for grants. But scammers then use the information to drain the consumer’s bank account or commit identity theft. E-mail solicitations with the same theme load spyware onto consumers’ computers when they click on a Web link.

“Scammers are using the stimulus bill as a more appealing lure to prey on their victims,” Coughlin said. “These offers are very enticing for families in financially desperate situations, and scammers are taking advantage of that.”