The Scam Alert Blog

You can bet scammers every where are trying to come up with new ways to trick you out of what is being called your “government rebate” check. The government is sending out $300 to $600 per person and there is a good chance that at some point you will be contacted shortly by a disreputable person in need of money or trying to sell you something. Stay alert and be skeptical of anyone during this time or any time when it is known that you are receiving funds (inheritance, tax return, etc.). Stay vigilant and don’t let the scammers win.

Most people are familiar with the lottery scam. The way it usually works is that you get notified of a mysterious lotter win, usually from outside the country. You are then asked to pay a processing fee so that the prize money can be either converted to a different currency or transfered from a foreign bank. Of course your money going out is real, but the money promised in the lottery is not. Here is a personal experience story regarding someone who has fallen victim to this scam.

Take a look at this article detailing how scammers are posing as members of the military selling their belongings. Scammers try anything to gain the trust of their potential victims. Most people in the public feel that most members of the military are honest and trustworthy, therefore they tend to let their guard down when it comes to dealing with them. Scammers know this and try to take advantage of it. Don’t fall victim to this type of scam.

Online and offline scams are in the news all the time, but what are the top 4 scams used during 2007. The FBI knows, now you know too. If you are vigilant and use common sense you should be able to avoid most scams, always stay on guard.

Here’s a look about a scam that didn’t take place online. A woman claimed that she was raped and as happens in communities from time to time an account was established in her name to handle donations to help her out. Well, it later came out that the claim was false. Now, what to do with these donations? The bank that is holding the account has decided to offer the donations back to those that made them. Acts like this hinder other women who have been legitimately raped and also hinder future donors who may think twice because they don’t want to be lied to like these donors were.

Here is a great story that shows the process that some of these online scammers go through to get money and information from people. The “puppy scam” has been around for a little while now, it’s where an ad is placed saying that due to a sudden move across country or out of the country someone has to get rid of their puppies. For a small fee to cover shipping of the puppies, you can adopt them yourself. As with all scams, what is promised is never delivered.

There is yet another online scam out there that tries to appear that it comes from the IRS. It works like this, you get an email confirming your tax refund is ready and all you have to do is click the link in the email. The link takes you to a site that looks like an IRS site and asks for you to confirm your “information” (name, address, phone, mother’s maiden name, social security number, and PIN number). You guessed it, it isn’t an official IRS site… it’s a scammer’s site and they’re trying to steal your identity. Always be on the lookout!

An Australian woman has been operating for 3-4 years selling items she doesn’t own to other moms online. Concert tickets, baby supplies, baby furniture, and more have all been reported to have been paid for but never delivered. Police are investigating right now.

Here is yet another scam that centers around the payment being sent to a foreign bank account, this one involving fake stock investments. The scammers will groom potential victims with promises of ground floor investments that are not available to the general public yet. They’ll provide them with all the fake paperwork and websites to show that it is a real opportunity. The eye opening red flag that should make everyone aware that it is a scam is when they ask for the payment to be sent to a foreign bank account.

Be very wary of any transaction where the person selling you the goods or services requires payment sent to a foreign bank account. Most legitimate businesses have no problem establishing bank accounts in countries that they do business in. Don’t let scammers separate you from your money.

There is a scam going on right now where a fraudulent company gets ahold of debit card numbers, issues a pending charge of $1 to verify that the number is good and in use, and then chargest anywhere from $400 to $800 under the name ID Theft or Identity Protect. If this happens to you, dispute the charge so the bank will refund the money and then see what other steps your bank will take to protect your account. Don’t let scammers get your money.