The Scam Alert Blog

Based on a Microsoft survey, here are some findings regarding online scams:

So, stay vigilant… with knowledge and awareness, we can defeat the scammers.

Internet scams are everywhere these days and it is easy to get so skeptical that you think every online contact you make is with someone who has it as their goal to separate you from your money.

Here is an interesting case “ripped from the headlines” (so to speak).

Richard White posted a notice on Classmates.com concerning his 30 year high school reunion. He soon received an email from someone he didn’t know, in the email were all sorts of probing questions about his parents names and his family history. Richard chalked it up to an Internet scam and sent back what was best described as a “salty” reply.

It turns out, that email came from a long lost sister that he didn’t know existed, a baby given up for adoption by his mother over forty years earlier.

Sometimes, it’s not a scam. We at the Scam Alert Blog love happy endings… but don’t let down your guard.

Yeah, that’s just what I need… another bank account.

Seriously, you do… and here’s why.

First, with all the competition among major banks these days it is hard to find banks that charge for a checking or savings account anymore. They have to offer free accounts just to get people in the door to buy their other services. So, your first step is getting a new free checking or savings account.

Now, here’s why you need that account. Internet scams are everywhere these days. You can find many examples right here at The Scam Alert Blog or just search Google for “Intenet Scam”. Everyone’s biggest fear is that some unknown person is going to come up with a way to separate you from your money. It happens every day, in fact it happens thousands of times everday.

For a wide variety of transactions online you will need to pay for purchases or services somehow. You can pay by credit card, checking account, or with an online bank account like Paypal. What if the worst happens to you? What if someone hacks into your computer, or just as likely they hack into someone’s computer who has your personal information because you purchased something from them? There goes your credit card. There goes your bank account. It’s all just gone.

But, if you take this advice you can at least limit the damage done to you. Get that second checking account, even get it at a different bank if you’d like. Keep a limited amount of funds in there, or better yet only transfer money into this account when you are going to purchase something. Now, your primary account remains active but private. Don’t share any information from that account. Still be protective of your secondary account, you don’t want to lose a penny to one of these worthless crooks, but use this account for your online purchases. Now, if the worst happens, they don’t drain your main account, they most likely get a minimal amount of money and you are saved from financial devastation.

The same advice goes for a credit card, get a second one with a low limit. Use this one for your online purchases, and if the worst happens then it can’t go very far.

Using common sense and the knowledge and awareness that these people are out there trying to victimize you everyday is one way to stay one step ahead of the crooks.

The Biggest Internet Scam In Recent History
By Mikey Miller

Are you interested in hearing about the biggest internet scam in recent history? NO! Would you be interested if you discovered that it is possibly you that was scammed several months ago and did not even know it? In fact, if you were scammed back then you probably have had money removed from your bank account every month AND you may not even know you are losing your money. Now you are interested!

This foundation for this breech of internet security started a couple of years ago as a gift from your caring politicians and bureaucrats in the form of bank funds electronic transfer legislation. Simple stated, if you owe anyone money they (whoever) can ‘electronically’ withdraw it from your account without your permission if they have a contract in place.

A few weeks back a neighbor lady came to me venting her disapproval because some unknown and unnamed internet company had cleaned out her banking account. She was going to complain, bring legal suit and if she could find a real person she was going to do really mean things. It took 5 minutes and three questions to find out she was into a legal binding electronic contract she knew nothing about.

Questions 1: Did you buy and download (very key) any information from the internet. Usually a CD or something similar. Answer-YES.
Question 2: Did you knowingly enter into a binding contract with these people. Answer: ABSOLUTELY NOT!! Real answer-Yes
Question 3: Did you read all the fine print including the “Terms and Services”. Answer: NO, BUT I KNOW THERE WAS NO CONTRACT OF ANY SORT. Real answer-NO I did not read the fine print.

After displaying the website it took the whole of about 15-20 milliseconds to see the scam. I had to explain it three times before the dear lady could see it. Then the next question: “What can I do? I have tried to stop it.” The result was she had to close out here bank account to kill the credit card.

Here is how it works. Either through email or PPC or some other way you end up on a webpage that, for example, guarantees to make you $187,594.26 in 30 minutes while working at home 10 minutes a day. Maybe this is slightly exaggerated but you get the picture. They usually have a CD that will give you all the information you need to carry off this money making project. Normally this CD would cost $99 but if you act within the next 2 hours, being the good guy you are you get it for free.

Now this is great deal. What is not to like? Wait there is one more thing. It only fair that since the CD is free that you should pay the shipping and handling. I think that is only fair don’t you. Stop and read the above paragraph carefully again. What is wrong with this scenario? Where is the big red flapping flag!

DA!? This is the internet remember. The keywords are digital, electronic, and downloadable. If the information is electronically downloadable why send it by snail mail? What does this transaction yield to the creditor website? Your credit card information! Why is that a worry, the shipping cost is so small; only $7-8.

Now Question 2 comes into focus. Somewhere on the website there is a free trial offer (usually 15-30 days) that comes with a ‘on line resident expert’ attached. If the CD doesn’t contain all the information you need the expert is on call to answer your questions. He/she might not speak English or have any relevant knowledge or experience on the subject but you get the free service for 15-30 days notwithstanding.

Here comes the neat part. Look at question 3 again. Did you read the fine print included in the terms and conditions? Of course not, no one reads that stuff. I bet you do from now on. Somewhere in the fine print it will say something like. ‘You can unsubscribe from the normal service of the expert within the trial period (15-30 days) and there will be no penalty. However, if you do not unsubscribe we will take the normal amount (usually $20-40) out of your credit card account monthly.” But, you say, that does not a contract make. You are absolutely correct. Except!

It is the little check box down where you enter you credit card information for the handling and shipping to get your ‘free’ CD that causes all the problems. “Buy checking this box you agree to all the terms and conditions” of the website – meaning the month to month withdrawal of your funds if you do not unsubscribe during the free trail period. That constitutes a legal contract under the electronic signature legislation. You have just agreed to send that company a monthly payment for services for the rest of you life or until you stop it.

Hold on, it only gets better. How many people do you know that really check their credit card statements in detail every month? Apparently not enough. A $30 withdrawal might stay hidden in your 4+ page credit card statement for months. Then when you do find it try to get it stopped. I tracked down an internet company doing this very thing; it took about three days of intense research. I sent an email to the highest officer we could find demanding to stop, stating we had no contract. I got back an email with the following answer; “Oh yes you do.’ He was correct.

The moral of this story is simple. You must prevent this scam before it begins. In writing or generating legal documents of any kind, especially electronically, there is one absolute generic rule. “READ THE MAIL, UNDERSTAND THE MAIL and ANSWER THE MAIL”

In other words if you are reading and understanding every word on a website, conduct your business with confidence. If not my recommendation is “DO NOT ELECTRONCIALLY SIGN ANY THING, IT MAY CONTAIN A HIDDEN CONTRACT”. Read the fine print. Make sure you know exactly what you are electronically signing. Answer ever detail with personal knowledge as to what it means; even if you have to read the terms and conditions a dozen times. Reject them if there are any questions.

Internet security is a serious matter that can only be controlled through knowledge by those people using the internet. Do not rely on a piece of software or a firewall entirely. Internet scams are perpetrated by very intelligent people that can think and work around most internet security devices.

Remember what Smokey the Bear says; “Only you can prevent internet scams!” Well, if he didn’t say it he should have.

P.T. Barnum did say. “There is a sucker born every minute.”

I say on the internet there are one million suckers born every minute.

Mike Miller is the developer of the holistic family online Family iMall with the new concept of online shopping ‘informational speciality ishops’ such as the World Wide Fishing Charter ishop.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mikey_Miller
http://EzineArticles.com/?The-Biggest-Internet-Scam-In-Recent-History&id=252200

Clown Internet Scam - An Internet Scam is Currently Targeting Clowns and Other Entertainers
By Tom Raymond

I am the victim of an internet scam. It is very hard to write that sentence, but it’s necessary in order to warn my fellow clowns, magicians and other entertainers, and to prevent them from being taken for $2,800.00 like I was. Here is what happened to me, and how you can avoid it.

I run the clown-ministry.com web site, and I perform as a clown at both ministry and secular events. Due to the popularity of the clown-ministry.com web site (do a search on Google .com for ‘clown’ and it’s the 7th site listed, for example) I’m easily found by people — for both good and bad reasons. For instance, last year my wife Ellen and I taught clowning for a week at the Seventh Day Adventists’ national Camporee — we’re not Adventists, and don’t know many people who are, but we were found by them & hired primarily due to the popularity of the web site. We’ve been invited to perform in clown at a conference in Canada, performed at company picnics, etc. well out of our neck of the wood, and so on. Please understand that this isn’t bragging; it’s setting the stage for what happened in the scam.

We were contacted via e-mail by someone purportedly from Cincinnati, Ohio, who wanted to fly my wife & I to Cincinnati to perform at a birthday party. Since we’d had similar things happen in the past, that didn’t set off any alarms in my head. In addition, I knew that there are entertainers such as Jennifer Lopez who will sing “Happy Birthday” at your party, for a fee of $50,000.00; I’m no J Lo, and my singing is atrocious, but I charge a lot less as well

I did an internet search on that person (I’m not using the name he gave, since there’s a criminal investigation as well as FBI investigation going on — no joke), and found someone by that name in Cincinnati, Ohio, a “regional celebrity” so to speak. So, it didn’t seem incredulous that he would have the money to hire us as well as pay round trip air fare. It’s now obvious that it was merely someone using that person’s name to “hook” us.

At that point, my wife & I were still inclined to think of this as a prank, but even so we replied to the email with a quotation for our services, politely and professionally. We were joking with each other that this had to be a prank; after all, why would someone hire us when there are hundreds of clowns in the Cincinnati area? Unless it was someone with money to burn who wanted to buy “bragging rights,” it made no sense. So we forgot about it, until the person replied back, hiring us.

We still considered it a joke, until we received a check in the mail, for $2,800.00. MUCH more that we had quoted our services for! We thought that, maybe, the excess was to pay for round trip air fare and accommodations, but even so that was far too much. We e-mailed the person back, explaining that we had received $2,800.00 via check. His response is what should have tipped us off to the scam.

He replied that, since he was out of the country on a business trip, he had his personal assistant send the checks out for the party, and the assistant had made a mistake, combining with our check one for $2,300.00 for the photographer from the United Kingdom that he was flying in to photograph the party. Would we be so kind as to send him those funds via Western Union?

Like an idiot, I said “yes.” The check had been deposited and cleared (I thought), and I didn’t want to hold onto money that didn’t belong to me. So, I went to the local Western Union office and sent $2,300.00 to an individual in the United Kingdom. This didn’t set off any red flags (although it should have) since it seemed like the type of silly mistake I’ve seen people do before. What happened next, though, set off every red flag in my head, and then some.

Days later, I received another email from the man supposedly from Cincinnati. According to him, his mother had an advanced form of lung cancer, and needed an immediate operation. He wanted me to send the remaining money to his mother’s doctor in Nigeria and he would reschedule the party later. When I heard the word ‘Nigeria’ I had icicles running up and down my spine. Nigeria is famous, in the internet world, for being home to the most prolific scam of all time. You’ve likely received spam email about it. In a nutshell, it involves the widow of some minister or rich person, who is trying to smuggle their immense fortune out of the country before it’s seized by her dead husband’s adversaries; in exchange for letting them use your bank account, they will give you (various amounts of money, if not enough to make you filthy rich, at least enough to make you dingy). Of course, no money comes out, but these people proceed to rob your bank account of every penny.

So, when I heard that, fear clutched at my heart. Besides, why would someone rich enough to hire me (and fly a photographer in from the UK) need my money? The answer is, he didn’t; he was just trying to bilk me of more money before his ruse was exposed.

You see, when I initially deposited the $2,800.00 check, it appeared to clear; it was then several more days before he requested the $2,300 to his photographer, and nearly a week (from the time I deposited the check) until I complied with that. 11 days after the check was initially deposited, it came back ‘funds denied.’ The bank then debited $2,800.00 from my checking account — which didn’t contain that much, of course. So, I’m out $2,800.00, the crook (or his accomplice in the UK) received $2,300.00. What’s the moral of the story?

The purpose of this is two-fold: to warn my fellow clowns, and to point out the red flags that I should have seen, and what I should have done.

1. Bogus email address: there are many ‘free’ email sites available, where anyone can set up a free email account. Spammers, and many others use these to hide behind. Never trust information coming from a ‘free’ account.
2. Depositing the check: I should have deposited the check, and then waited 2 weeks to ensure that it had cleared. I had seen people selling items on ebay.com who warn people paying by personal check that they would not ship items until 2 weeks after the check was deposited, just to prevent this problem. In my case, they used an internet service (qchex.com) instead of a personal check, but the same time period applies.
3. Sending money back: I should have offered to send the money back to the original person after 2 weeks, or destroyed the check and asked them to re-send the correct amount.
4. Nigeria!: need I say more? Sending money to Nigeria is a Bad Idea.

So, that’s where it lies. I’m out $2,800.00, and in danger of losing my house due to the actions of this criminal. Jesus Christ orders His followers to “pray for those who despitefully use you” (Matthew 5:44). It’s difficult, but I’m praying. Thank you for listening — be sure to protect yourself and your loved ones.

Tom Raymond, aka. Raynbow the magic clown, is a professional clown and underemployed computer geek, webmaster of http://www.clown-ministry.com/ the largest clown resource site on the web. His personal site can be found at http://www.clown-ministry.com/raynbow/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tom_Raymond
http://EzineArticles.com/?Clown-Internet-Scam—An-Internet-Scam-is-Currently-Targeting-Clowns-and-Other-Entertainers&id=45477

We’ve just had another Scam Prevention blog brought to our attention. The fine folks over at Scamtards have a decent amount of helpful information. We’re not selfish, the more people out there fighting against the scammers the better!

Craigslist.org has turned into a great place to find those hard-to-find bargains or items. Tickets to a basketball game, the same car you had while you were in high school, and more can be found on this helpful site.

Like anything though, do your research when entering into a transaction. You probably don’t need to show much skepticism when buying a $20 lamp, but how about when renting a house.

Here is a story of at least eight people who paid rental deposits to a lady for the same house… a house she didn’t even own.

Be wary of anyone and always double check their stories.

Internet Fraud Protection - Ensure Safety
By Sara K

No one can guarantee you 100% prevention against online fraud or provide you with the perfect solution for internet fraud protection, but by taking proper precautions you can reduce the risk to a great extent.
You can give yourself internet fraud protection by:

• Making sure that the pages of any website that ask for personal information start with “http” so as to indicate its security. Sites that begin without “http” are not secure and you should be careful with such.
• For secure pages there is usually a padlock being displayed at the bottom of the screen and you can view the security details of the page by clicking onto that. If the page is of some fraudulent website then no such details will be visible.
• Never give out your credit card numbers online unless you are sure about the security and authenticity of the website. Flashy websites do not necessarily mean authentic sites.
• Do not respond to unsolicited emails for special offers and do not believe in the promises of large sum of money being offered as prizes.
• In case of doubt of internet fraud, call up your bank or payment processors for more details or to report it.
• Before buying online make sure that he address of the company you are applying to is available on their website along with the fax and phone number.
• When transferring funds, always use reliable company sites and never transfer or receive money from any non-reliable source.
• Check the reliability of the site’s privacy policy and check your bank statement against anything that you buy online.

Don’t become the Victim – get Internet Fraud Protection!

You could be the victim of internet fraud if:

• You have paid for a product or service online and have not received it yet
• If you have sold or bought something online and have not received the payment for it
• If the product or good received does not entirely match the original description given
• Have given away your personal information like the credit card number on an insecure webpage

Suspecting Internet Fraud?

Here is what you can do to ensure internet fraud protection:

• In case of suspicion of internet fraud call the company and inform authorities
• If you bought or sold at an auction site then check to see with the company if they can solve the problem
• If you paid for the products or good with a credit card and they have not arrived yet then you need to immediately check with your credit card company and inform them
• The credit card company will take you step by step through the procedure and investigate into the case
• Check with your online payment service providers for more info and internet fraud protection services

Get Internet Fraud Protection – Watch out for:

Internet makes it easier for fraudsters to make people part with their money in fraudulent schemes, claiming their money for a few prizes that they offer online.

You can give yourself internet fraud protection and save yourself from becoming a victim of internet fraud by:

• Being Cautious – if some offer sounds too good to be true then that is probably the case
• Research – ask around about the company you are giving your money to before paying for anything
• Take Advice – don’t mind taking advice from those who have been in this industry for a longer period of time
• Trust – don’t judge a company by its website, no matter how flashy it is or how professional it looks
• Check for Authenticity – you can check for the authenticity of the website by looking them up on Federal Authority Services websites and check for their registration

Identity theft includes your personal information like credit card number, National insurance number and address etc. Fraudsters can apply for various benefits with such info without you even knowing about it. Most internet fraud is committed through emails. Criminals try to get the credit card numbers by sending emails that appear to be from reputable organizations and encourage you to send in your card details and password. That is why it is important that you get internet fraud protection for yourself and your e-commerce business so that you and your customers can process in a safe and reliable environment.

Merchant Accounts at Instabill offer Internet Fraud Protection along with Scam Control.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sara_K
http://EzineArticles.com/?Internet-Fraud-Protection—Ensure-Safety&id=671124

Internet Dating Fraud
By Fabiola Castillo

If you fall for one of these internet dating scams, you could end up with a broken heart and pocketbook.

Searching for a soul mate on the internet has become very popular these last few years. Services such as eHarmony.com, Yahoo! Personals, and many others like them have millions of users who post personals advertisements in the hopes of meeting their spouse to be. There are dozens of success stories, and we all know of somebody who has married their significant other whom they met online. Such success stories like these have encouraged many others to turn to online dating which used to be something people scoffed at during the early days of the internet. It is unfortunate that online dating also has its dark side. Somebody placing their personals advertisement on the web can be an easy victim for both professional con artists and internet predators. Both use similar techniques if not the same to entice unsuspecting hearts into a web of deception.

A good scam artist will take his or her time to sway you to complacency. In reality, they are talking with numerous other people at the same time, and they are very skilled at what they do since they improve their methods regularly. At first glance, it may be very hard to discern a scam artist from somebody showing genuine affection but eventually the perpetrators play the scam card. That is when you should start thinking with your brain and not with your heart.

I would love to meet but I can’t right now

It is logical meeting face to face somebody with whom you fell in love on the internet if they have not raised any of your suspicions. A relationship can not be taken to the next level without some human interaction. This is also a perfect opportunity to play his scam card. A scam artist will tell you that they would love to meet face to face but does not have enough money for the trip. This is when they request that you send them the money to buy their plane ticket if you have not suggested it yourself. This happens all the time. A better plan might be for you to visit them instead to gauge their reaction. Sending money especially to somebody overseas is a very bad idea. Not doing so may force your significant other to turn elsewhere but it is more likely to cost you every dime you sent to this person.

I’ve been hospitalized and can’t afford a day’s stay

Another trick used to part internet lovers from their money is the old “I’ve been hospitalized” scam. Your significant other may suddenly give you some bad news by telling you they have been hospitalized. Hearing that your soul mate needs medical care but can not afford it can be very emotionally draining. An expert scammer is well aware of this. Be cautious of anybody you have met on the internet telling you that they need money from you to pay their medical bills. It may be difficult to deny this request but doing so may quickly disclose your lover’s ulterior motives.

Mail Order Bride Scams

Mail order bride scams usually begin with an unsolicited e-mail saying that somebody has read your online profile and has shown interest. At first glance, these e-mails seem genuine. Everybody and their grandmother have online profiles and guess what? They are all interesting. What is surprising is that we get very few of these responses to our profiles. In reality, the e-mail is generic and can be used toward just about anybody. There are crooked people out there sending these e-mails to thousands of recipients. Spam is what this is called. Reply to one, and you will get them same old story. The young lady will sound very nice and sincere. She may be a cashier or teacher, and she will always be leading a difficult life. If you continue to correspond, there will be some sudden outpouring declaration of love and affection. Shortly thereafter, there will be requests for money to either help support her since jobs opportunities are very small in her country, or she will want funds for a travel VISA so that she can visit you. If that does not work, she will need money for continuing use of the internet, food, or even a small operation you can help finance. The moment you send her money, she will have won her con game against you. She will continue to ask for more money until you are tapped out. Think of her as a trash can into where you keep dumping your hard earned money, and you may never even meet her. In fact, she may already be married to somebody else and is only using you to help support her spouse and family. It is your money and NOT your heart that she is after.

Prisoner Personals Scam

It is a fact that convicted felons can now post their profiles on websites. Some of these perps are sex offenders or rapists. How are they allowed to do this? There are agencies with their own websites that allow convicts to send their profiles to them via U.S. Postal Service, and they post their profiles online for them. Agencies that post these profiles on behalf of the prisoners do not have to disclose what the nature of their crime is. Such agencies will only tell you that these prisoners are in for some non-violent crime. If you answer an online prisoner personal, you should seriously consider delving into the perpetrator’s criminal past rather than just believing what is posted on the agencies’ websites.

There are many forms of internet fraud going on nowadays. It is up to you to educate yourself on what is or is not legitimate. Hopefully, our advice will minimize your chances of becoming a victim of the crime of internet fraud.

Fabiola Castillo is an online marketer for the website NinjaCOPS.com This webstore specializes in selling pepper spray, Taser guns, nunchaku, kubatons, stun guns, and many other personal defense products.

If you are looking for wedding favors such as photo glass coasters, heart-shaped compact mirrors, wine bottle stoppers, and more, visit Yolandas Wedding Favors. They’ll take care of you guaranteed.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Fabiola_Castillo
http://EzineArticles.com/?Internet-Dating-Fraud&id=613055

Protect Yourself from Internet Scam Operations Using This Tool
By Casey Yew

WHOIS Domain Name Search:

Have you ever tried looking for a domain name with the use of the WHOIS domain name search? If yes, then great for you! But for those who have not heard about the WHOIS domain name search, then you should read on for you to discover the wonder of this particular thing.

On the Internet, every domain registrar maintains a WHOIS database containing all contact information for the domains they ‘host’. This WHOIS database contains information about a domain name including name server, registrar and full contact information. Internet Network Information Center (InterNIC, http://www.internic.com) maintains a central registry WHOIS database that contains only the registrar and name server information for all .com, .net and .org domains

So, when we perform a WHOIS domain name search, we are using a WHOIS tool to look up contact information for a domain name from one of these WHOIS databases on the Internet. The WHOIS database will return the registration information that is intended for domain names. The name and the contact details for the domain name holder and the domain name administrator will be presented. It is important to know that the contact information for domain names under the hands of the WHOIS domain name database may vary depending on the registrar.

WHOIS Tool:

You can use the following tools to run a WHOIS domain name search:

• http://who.godaddy.com/whoischeck.aspx

• http://www.checkdomain.com

The Use of WHOIS Domain Name Search:

1. Check Your Own Domain Name: Many experts said that it is necessary when you do a WHOIS domain name search on your own domain name, you should verify that your contact details are accurate. If you encounter errors in the domain name details, you could fix errors on your domain names by contacting your web hosting company.

2. Website Background Check: You can find out how long a website has been around, who owns it, and where that company or individual is actually located by doing a WHOIS domain name search. You will be able to spot a scam operation by comparing the information you find from the search with the information that is shown on the website. For example, if a website claims that it has been in operation for many years but your findings show that the domain name they use has just been created a week ago, you may not want to trust this website.

In some cases, you may not get any information from WHOIS domain name search if the domain name is protected by domain name protection service.

Domain Name Protection:

Some web hosting companies provide domain name protection service that will help a website owner to protect his or her privacy. Domain name protection service protects website owner’s identity from domain-related spams. With this service, only the domain name protection service contact information will be shown in the WHOIS domain name search. Website owner’s contact information is kept completely private. The website owner still owns the domain name. He or she can cancel, sell, renew or transfer the domain.

- Free Domain Name (http://www.currentwebhosting.com) -
- $10K Worth of Resell Rights Products Giveway (http://www.highreturnbusiness.com) -
- Free Classified Ads for Subscribers. (http://www.tipandaction.com) -

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Casey_Yew
http://EzineArticles.com/?Protect-Yourself-from-Internet-Scam-Operations-Using-This-Tool&id=235965