Updates from September, 2021 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 16, 2021 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , genetic testing, , , ,   

    Scam Round Up: Beware of these Medicare scams 

    By Greg Collier

    There have been a number of stories about Medicare scams in the news this week. Unfortunately, they all deal with victims giving their Medicare numbers to scammers over the phone. Here are the highlights of each scam.

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    The AARP is warning Medicare recipients across the country about a phone scam where the fraudsters are threatening victims with termination of their benefits. The scammers are posing as Medicare and calling seniors across the country, telling the seniors that they need a new Medicare card or their benefits will be terminated. The scammers will then ask the victim for their Medicare number for the supposed new card. Instead, the scammers are selling the Medicare numbers to other scammers, who may use the numbers to file false claims. When Medicare does issue new cards, they do so through the mail and will not call recipients asking for information that Medicare should already have.

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    Patients of a healthcare network in Missouri have reported receiving calls from scammers posing as hospital representatives. This includes spoofing the hospital’s actual phone number. Many of the calls have been trying to get patients to order medical equipment like back and knee braces. The scammers have been asking for patients’ Social Security and Medicare numbers. You should only order medical equipment like this if directed by your physician. To do so any other way could lead to fraudulent claims or ill-fitting and ineffective equipment. No physician or medical professional will ever call you unsolicited to try to sell you any medical equipment.

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    Lastly, we have another scam that’s been targeting Medicare recipients nationwide. In this scam, again, the victims are being cold-called, which is something Medicare will never do. The scammers are claiming to be a patient advocate working with Medicare. They offer free genetic testing to detect cancer or heart disease, but if you don’t act soon, you’ll be ineligible for the free procedure. Again, Medicare does not make offers on medical procedures like it’s double coupon day at your local supermarket. Usually, if a test is ordered through one of these calls, it either never appears or is dubious in quality and efficacy. This could also affect patients in the future if they need one of these tests, but already have one billed to Medicare. These tests are quite expensive, and this scam could lead to patients having a substantial medical bill in the thousands.

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    It really is just good practice to not give your Medicare number out over the phone, especially to someone who calls you out of the blue.

     
  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 15, 2021 Permalink | Reply
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    Pharmacy data breach exposes millions of customers’ data 

    Pharmacy data breach exposes millions of customers' data

    By Greg Collier

    When someone entrusts a billion-dollar company with their medical information, you might assume that they take security seriously. After all, HIPAA violations are no joke. The largest HIPAA fine so far was $18 million paid by a major health insurance company after they feel for a phishing attack, exposing client data in the process. So, say you’re the largest pharmacy chain in the nation. You’ve also tested countless customers for COVID-19. You must have some kind of impenetrable security in place to keep all that information private, right? Maybe not according to security experts.

    A security consultant had his family tested for COVID-19 back in March at a local Walgreens. While getting his family’s test results, he discovered a flaw in Walgreens’ website that exposed customer information related to the COVID-19 tests. This information is said to have contained name, date of birth, phone number, address, and email along with other sensitive information. The consultant tried to get in touch with Walgreens to warn them about the flaw, but they allegedly ignored him. Tech news site, Recode, also investigated the flaw and notified Walgreens about it. Recode even gave Walgreens time to fix the vulnerability before they published their report, but according to Recode, the vulnerability still hasn’t been fixed.

    As of the time of this post, there has been no confirmation that any bad actor has come into possession of any customer information. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean they haven’t. If you used Walgreens for COVID-19 testing since July 2020, you may want to keep an eye on your credit report. This breach could be a potential treasure trove for identity thieves. The information could also be used by scammers to sound more legitimate since they have some personal details of your life.

     
  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 14, 2021 Permalink | Reply
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    Slick new scam targets satellite subscribers 

    Slick new scam targets satellite subscribers

    By Greg Collier

    Consumers who subscribe to satellite TV sometimes have to deal with a number of scams. This usually comes in the form of scammers offering some too good to pass up upgrade. The scammers will then use your financial information to take your money right out of your bank account or steal your credit card information. Some scammers will even ask you for your satellite TV PIN to divert your payment from your provider to the scammers. However, a new scam has popped up that is clever enough that it might find a higher number of victims than the typical scam.

    In upstate New York, consumers have complained about a scam that sounds plausible but has a telltale sign it’s a scam. The scammers are posing as DirecTV representatives and offering an upgrade as a co-promotion with eBay. As part of the deal with eBay, customers are being asked to pay for the upgrade using eBay gift cards. As we always say, gift cards are a surefire way to tell if something is a scam. No legitimate company takes gift cards as payment. Scammers prefer gift cards since they can be redeemed almost immediately and are virtually untraceable.

    What makes this scam a little more concerning than usual is that the scammers are said to have customers’ account numbers. How the scammers are obtaining this information is unknown at this time. So even if the caller has your account information, that doesn’t rule them out from being a scammer. Anytime you get a call like this, you should hang up and call your provider at their customer service number listed on your bill. They’ll then be able to tell you if an offer is legitimate or not. However, if the offer is tied to payments in gift cards, that’s virtually guaranteed to be a scam.

     
  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 13, 2021 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: border patrol, , , ,   

    FBI: The Border Patrol is not coming to get you 

    FBI: The Border Patrol is not coming to get you

    By Greg Collier

    Previously, we’ve seen the Border Patrol scam target seniors almost exclusively. In this scam, the scammers would call up an elderly target posing as an officer from U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The scammers claim that someone rented a car using the target’s identity near the Mexican Border, and the car was found with drugs in it. The target will then be informed that there’s now a warrant out for their arrest. However, the scammers will say they believe that the target’s identity has been stolen. They’ll just need a payment in some non-monetary form to supposedly secure the target’s identity. Without the payment, though, they’ll still be forced to arrest the target.

    The FBI is now warning citizens that there has been a dramatic increase in this scam, and it’s not just targeting the elderly. A reporter from Los Angeles recently received one of these calls. She knew it was a scam and played along with it anyway. It was a robocall that warned the recipient that CBP has seized a car registered under their name that contained illicit drugs. The reporter was then asked to press 1 to speak to a CBP officer. When the ‘officer’came on the line, the reporter said she knows this is a scam and wanted to know where the caller was from. The caller said he was from Afghanistan and threatened to blow up the reporter’s home. According to an FBI agent, there’s no evidence to indicate that the caller was from Afghanistan or that the threat was credible.

    As with most scams, the FBI recommends not answering phone calls from numbers you don’t recognize. In this case, the scammers used a block of numbers used by the reporter’s employer. So even if it looks like a local call, the number can be spoofed. Also, if you take a moment to think about it, the call makes less sense. No law enforcement agency is going to call someone that they’re supposedly investigating. Even if it was a case of stolen identity, and the car full of drugs existed, agents would want to speak to you in person. Lastly, you may also want to keep in mind that police or federal agents will never ask you for money over the phone.

     
  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 10, 2021 Permalink | Reply
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    There is no stimulus surprise 

    There is no stimulus surprise

    By Greg Collier

    It’s been months since the IRS issued their last round of economic impact payments, otherwise known as stimulus payments. At the time of this writing, there are no current plans to issue a fourth round of stimulus payments. However, that hasn’t stopped scammers from using promises of additional payments to get what they want from their victims. In fact, the IRS recently said that the number of scams they’ve received complaints about has been the highest that they’ve seen in over a decade.

    Recently, there’s been a nationwide uptick in scammers using the promise of stimulus payments to get information or more from their victims. The methods aren’t new, but the message is. Scammers are sending out texts and emails that claiming that the victim has been specially chosen by the President to receive a surprise credit. Other messages have stated that the victim has unclaimed stimulus money. Even more messages posing as the government ask victims for their banking information, claiming that the IRS needs it again to send out another stimulus payment. All the messages contain a link that the scammers hope you click on. Moe than likely, the link will take you to a phony website asking for your personal and financial information, which the scammers can then use for any number of illicit purposes.

    As always, there’s a good way to avoid this scam if you keep one thing in mind. The IRS does not communicate by text message or email, and they especially don’t do it out of the blue. If the IRS or just about any government agency needs to contact you for some reason, they will almost always do so through the postal mail. Everyone else is almost guaranteed to be a scammer.

     
  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 9, 2021 Permalink | Reply
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    Companies are being scammed by phony freelancers 

    Companies are being scammed by phony freelancers

    By Greg Collier

    If your company has a crucial but temporary role that needs to be filled, many employers will turn to freelancers to fulfil that need. With the way’s today’s demand economy is, many of these freelancers advertise their services on a platform like Upwork. Outlets like Upwork allow companies to review and compare the work and rates of freelancers before signing them on. Unfortunately, Upwork and other freelancer marketplaces are not immune to scams. In a previous scam, scammers were posing as employers and sending fraudulent checks to freelancers. Now, at least one scam is targeting the employers.

    The Better Business Bureau is stating that they’ve seen an uptick in phony freelancers on Upwork and other platforms. The scammers are essentially stealing the online identities of actual freelancers and posing as them. Much like in many scams, the scammers are said to be offering rates that are just too good to pass up. The scammers are asking for a deposit up front and then disappearing with the employer’s money.

    The BBB Is recommending that employers shouldn’t be lured in by freelancer rates that are too good to be true because they often are. It’s also recommended that employers have a video conference with the freelancer before hiring them to make sure they are who they say they are. Another suggestion is to look the freelancer up on a professional site like LinkedIn and do a web search for their personal portfolio.

    However, you should be careful when communicating with the freelancer and not to do it outside of Upwork before hiring them. Past scammers have tricked freelancers by communicating with them outside of Upwork’s virtual walls. Scammers and other cyber-criminals often try to communicate with their victims outside of usual channels.

     
  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 8, 2021 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: accidental deposit, , , deposit scam, , , , ,   

    There’s nothing accidental about these payments 

    There's nothing accidental about these payments

    By Greg Collier

    Last week, we posted about a scam that was affecting Venmo users. In that scam, scammers were posing as friends of the Venmo account holder and asking for money. But what do you do if a stranger sends you money that you didn’t ask for and does it through a payment app? The Better Business Bureau has issued a warning about an accidental payment scam that’s been affecting users of payment apps like Zelle, Venmo, Cash App and others.

    In what’s being called the accidental payment or accidental deposit scam, the victim receives a substantial payment from someone they don’t know. That payment is then followed up by a message from the person who sent the money, saying they sent that payment accidentally, and could you please send it back? Whatever you do at this point, do not send the money back like you would a regular payment.

    According to the BBB, the money that was sent to you was done using a stolen credit card. If you send the money back like a regular payment, you’ll be responsible for that money once it’s discovered the credit card is stolen.

    Instead, you should tell the sender to cancel the payment, which can be done on most of the popular payment apps. If they refuse or try to pressure you into sending it back, it’s more than likely a scam. Also, don’t spend the money that you receive from the scammer, or you’ll be held liable for that money.

    While many of the scammers are finding their victims randomly, others are finding them through social media. In order to prevent receiving phony payments like this, it’s best to keep your account names off of social media. While you may think it’s just a quick post between friends, it can be picked up quickly by scam artists.

     
  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 7, 2021 Permalink | Reply
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    FBI twist added to sweepstakes scam 

    FBI twist added to sweepstakes scam

    By Greg Collier

    Police in Oregon are warning about a new rash of sweepstakes scams or advance fee scams, as they’re sometimes known. In this scam, the scammers pose as a sweepstakes company, usually Publishers Clearing House since they’re the most well-known. The victim will receive a call, text or email telling them that they’ve won a big jackpot, except they need the victim to pay them taxes or a processing fee. Also, the victim needs to keep this matter private, so the local media supposedly doesn’t find out. These scams often target the elderly and when a victim pays once, the scammers will keep coming back for more. Now, scammers are using a new tactic to make sure the victim keeps paying.

    According to a report out of Oregon, the sweepstakes scammers make the victims pay by check. Once the scammers receive that check, they’re calling the victim back, posing as the FBI. The phony investigators tell the victim that the check they wrote was fraudulent. The scammer then threatens the victim with arrest if they don’t make another payment. Essentially, the scammers are combining two scams into on, the advance fee scam and the police impersonation scam. As you probably surmised, the police impersonation scam involves scammers posing as police, usually telling the victim they have a warrant out for their arrest, and that the victim needs to pay over the phone to make the warrant go away.

    Please keep in mind that you can’t win prizes from a sweepstakes you never entered. Plus, it’s also illegal for any sweepstakes to make you pay for any prize. As far as the FBI goes, no law enforcement agency will call you on the phone asking for money and threatening you with arrest if you don’t pay. The report from Oregon gives a great tip when it comes to police impersonation phone calls. Ask the caller for their phone number and tell them that you’ll call them back after speaking with your attorney. If they try to pressure you into staying on the phone, it’s more than likely a scam.

     
  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 3, 2021 Permalink | Reply
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    New job scam steals your identity 

    New job scam steals your identity

    By Greg Collier

    With so many job scams out there, it’s often hard to discern between a legitimate job offering and a scam. More often than not, there is usually a red flag somewhere along the line in the application process. For example, if you’re asked by the potential employer to pay for things like application fees or background checks, that’s a good indicator that the job could be a scam. Even if you get hired, there can still be red flags, such as being asked to deposit a check used for business expenses into your own bank account. But what if scammers were able to mimic a legitimate company while offering a phony position. According to the Better Business Bureau, that’s exactly what is happening.

    A woman in Rhode Island received an email that said she was eligible for a position after the company found her information on a state employment website. She was asked to reply to the email if she was interested in the position. The email appeared to come from a legitimate company in the region and even used the name of an actual company employee. The victim interviewed for the job. The report doesn’t say how she was interviewed, but it’s probably safe to assume it was a virtual interview.

    The scammers sent her a bunch of normal-looking paperwork to fill out and instructed her to verify her identity at a legitimate web portal used by many employers. After she signed in to the portal and gave all her pertinent information, she received a notification that her information was being sent to the California unemployment office. Essentially, the scammers stole her identity out from under her to apply for unemployment benefits in her name.

    If you’re unsure if a job offer is legitimate or not, check the email address the offer was sent from. If the email is from a free service like Gmail or Outlook.com, there’s a good chance the offer may not be real, as most legitimate employers have their own corporate email addresses. You can also go to the company’s website to see if the position you’re being offered is even open.

     
  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 2, 2021 Permalink | Reply
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    Your Venmo friend may not be your friend 

    Your Venmo friend may not be your friend

    By Greg Collier

    Payment and wallet apps like Venmo have been a great convenience for consumers. They can allow you to make payments to friends or make purchases without having to carry cash or a card that could be easily lost. As a modern society, we seem to be more protective of our phones than our methods of payment. However, we also sometimes seem to forego security over convenience, which has led to a number of these apps being used in scams. Venmo is not a stranger to these scams, but a new scam has emerged which may have Venmo looking at one of its features.

    In our opinion, the major drawback to using Venmo is that by default, your purchases and transactions are available on a public feed. That means anyone who knows your Venmo username can see who you’ve paid and where you’ve shopped. Scammers are well aware of this and are now creating Venmo accounts that look exactly like one of your friends’ accounts. The scammers will then contact their targets asking for money, and once that money leaves your Venmo account, it’s almost impossible to retrieve. Why this public feed is considered a feature on Venmo is beyond us.

    There are steps you can take to make your Venmo account more secure. The first thing you should do is make all your transactions private, which you can find the instructions for here. The second thing you can do is verify with your friends if they’re the ones actually asking you for money. That may require an awkward conversation depending on the situation, but that’s better than losing your money. You should only use apps like Venmo with people you know and verified merchants. Anybody else could be a security threat. Enable two-factor authentication to keep opportunists out of your account if they become in possession of your phone. Lastly, if you have the ability to do so, link a credit card to your account, as it will give you more protection than these apps offer on their own.

     
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