Greg's Corner

New online scam uses iTunes gift cards

Police in Upstate New York are telling people to be aware of a new scam taking place on some online classifieds sites. According to authorities scam artists posing as online sellers of a vehicle are asking people to pay with iTunes gift cards. The ‘sellers’ instruct the buyers to call a toll-free number where they are then told to read off the serial numbers from the backs of the cards. The buyer is then out of their money and no vehicle is ever delivered.

While this scam may only be localized to Upstate New York presently, it could certainly occur in any municipality. Scams like this also tend to ‘go on the road’ so to speak. When a scam is discovered by police in one area it could then easily move on to another. That is unfortunately the way in the digital world of today. The scam artists don’t even have to be in this country.  In too many cases people who have been swindled are often times left with no recourse. In the majority of instances in online commerce it’s often best to deal locally and with cash.