The Scam Alert Blog

There are widespread reports that many banks continue to get calls from their customers, as well as from people who are not their customers, regarding email messages they have received. These questionable emails are asking customers for their username and password credentials, or information related to their credit cards. Here is one example here.

These emails of course don’t come from the banks themselves and are attempts by scammers to get this sensitive information. Don’t fall for it, always call or make a face-to-face inquiry with the bank itself to confirm that there is a problem that needs fixing.

Don’t give these scammers the ability to clean out your bank account.

There are those involved in law enforcement that say that there are more scams reported recently and they chalk it up to the tough financial times that we are having. Hard financial times bring out scammers for two reasons:

1. You may see people that did operate honestly, or even semi-honestly, driven by hard financial times to a position where they feel they must take the next step and operate dishonestly. You may also see scammers who are having tougher times up their level of scamming too.

2. Scammers know that when people experience hard times they are more desperate, more desperate people fall for scams easier because they truly want to believe that the money making opportunity they’re looking at is real.

Always be on the lookout for scammers who are trying to separate you from your money.

With Hurricane Ike having passed through the Texas coast, the work of finding and helping those that survived this natural disaster has begun. People in the area need to remember that there are those that would take advantage of them during these hard times. This is one of the more disgusting behaviors that does follow national tragedies and though not incredibly common, it is important to beware of people offering to help who may have other goals and motivations.

We always warn people against being scammed, but in this case watch out for your neighbors and family members too.

Here is a look at a college student that sent out emails requesting money to help him pay for college. What are your opinions, does this fall under the heading of scammer or industrious and resourceful student? Sometimes it is a fine line.

Scams are every where, especially online. PC World has taken a look at the top 5 online scams and evaluated just what is exactly so bad about them. If you are smart and use a good amount of common sense, you can avoid falling victim to any scam. Always approach transactions, especially online transactions with a bit of skepticism. Don’t let scammers separate you from your money.

There is an old scam that still rears its ugly head now and then. Here is the story about a recent case of the re-mailing scam. The way it works is that basically someone asks a new acquaintance if they can receive some merchandise they ordered for them. The merchandise was ordered with a stolen credit card and the thief is using their acquaintance as a safe house to take delivery of it. This type of crime has three victims, the legal owner of the credit card who most likely will eventually get reimbursed, the seller of the merchandise who often gets nothing in return, and the person who was used as the drop house.

Though it can be quite contentious at times, there are few things more fun than politics, especially during the Presidential election season. If you’re the type of person interested in politics, you should check out ArgueWithEveryone.com for some of the best political discussion any where. It doesn’t matter what side of the issue you come down on, whether its abortion, health care, or the war in iraq.

Get your opinions heard, get some feedback on them and even give some feedback of your own on the opinions of others.

It is particularly disturbing when scammers try to mask themselves as established charities because they not only damage the targets of the scam, but possibly the reputation of the charity they are pretending to be. The Nelson Mandela Foundation has announced that they have discovered there are people using the foundation as a cover for their scams. This is shameful and people should always verify with the actual charity that the people they are dealing with are representing that charity before they hand over any funds.

Anyone out there looking for some of the best nightclubs in the Edinburgh area needs to check out StudentsUncovered.com. They have great information related to Nightclubs in Edinburgh, where are the best ones and when are the best times to go to them. Reliable information that you can bank on for the very best time. It is well worth it to check their site out before you head out for a good time.

There is a popular scam going on right now targeting Time Warner Cable customers. The scam is presented as an email and asks customers to verify their personal information or their service will be suspended. Common sense should kick in, but many victims of this scam have simply replied to the email with their sensitive information and have ended up having their various financial information compromised. Always approach such emails suspiciously.