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  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 7, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Kidnapping scam brings terror to family 

    Kidnapping scam brings terror to family

    By Greg Collier

    For the better part of this year, we’ve been warning our readers about scams that use AI mimicked voices of your loved ones. Typically, these spoofed voices are used in the grandparent scam and the virtual kidnapping scam. In these scams, it’s crucial for the scammers to make their victims believe that a member of the victim’s family is in immediate danger. To that end, scammers will steal a recording of someone’s voice, usually from social media.

    That voice sample is then run through an AI program that will allow the scammer to make the voice say anything they want it to, such as pleas for help. It’s gotten to the point where we believe the voice spoofing versions of these scams have become more common than their analog predecessors. For now, we think it’s pretty safe to assume if there’s a grandparent or virtual kidnapping scam, an AI voice clone is probably involved.

    For example, two parents in Ohio almost fell victim to the virtual kidnapping scam. They received a call that sounded like it was coming from their adult daughter. The parents described the call sounded like their daughter was in a panic. The voice said they were blindfolded and being held in a trunk. Then a male voice got on the call, claiming to be a kidnapper who would harm their daughter if they didn’t pay a ransom.

    To make matters worse, the supposed kidnapper knew the daughter’s name and the area where she worked. This made the claim of kidnapping seem more credible to the parents.

    At first, the parents did the right thing. They tried calling their daughter from another line, but were unable to get a hold of her. Then they called 911, but were still under the impression their daughter had been legitimately kidnapped.

    They went to get the ransom from their bank, but the branch had just closed. The caller instructed the parents to go to a local Walmart, probably to send a money transfer to the scammers. Thankfully, the police caught up with the parents to let them know their daughter was in no harm and the call was a scam.

    Not everyone is up on the latest scams, so just imagine the sense of fear and terror they must have experienced. However, all it takes is a little bit of knowledge to protect yourself from this scam. As we often cite, kidnappings for ransom are actually quite rare in the U.S. If you have a loved one who is active on social media, scammers can use the information shared to make it seem like they’ve been plotting a kidnapping for a while. Again, this is done to make their con seem more authentic.

    In the unfortunate event you receive a call like this, do exactly what these parents did. Contact the loved one who has been supposedly kidnapped on another line. The odds are you’ll find them not only safe, but unaware they’re being used in a scam. Then call the police for their assistance. Lastly, even if it sounds like the exact voice of your loved one, be skeptical, as these days, voices can be easily duplicated.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 6, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Real police don’t give discounts 

    By Greg Collier

    Older generations used to have a fear drilled into them about missing jury duty. For the longest time, there was a type of reverence toward jury duty. No one wanted to do it, but no one wanted to go to jail either. Whether that fear was warranted remains to be seen, but that fear still seems to have a grip on people, and scammers are using it to their advantage.

    Yes, we’re discussing the jury duty scam again. As we’ve said before, it’s probably the most common scam going today. Just in researching for today’s post, we found around a dozen news stories where local police departments and sheriff’s offices were warning residents about the scam. It’s a form of a police impersonation scam. Scammers will pose as local police or the local courthouse while calling their victims to tell them they missed jury duty. Sometimes the scammers will say the victim has a warrant out for their arrest, or if the victim is a professional, they missed a court date where they were supposed to give expert witness testimony.

    The endgame is always the same, though, the victim can supposedly avoid jail time by paying a fine over the phone. Like most scams, this is done by gift cards, payment apps, or cryptocurrency, three forms of payment that neither courts nor police ever accept or ask for. Another thing the police or courts will never do is offer offenders a discount.

    That’s what happened to a Pennsylvania man recently when he got a call telling him he had missed federal jury duty. The call appeared to come from his local sheriff’s office, but any phone number can be spoofed.

    The scammers told the man if he didn’t pay $4900, patrol cars would show up at his home to take him to jail for 60 days. The man tried to withdraw the money from his bank, but the transaction was declined as the bank thought the man was being scammed. At this point, the scammers lowered the phony fine to $1000, which, unfortunately, the victim sent through the Zelle payment app.

    If you’ve ever had a traffic ticket or any kind of court cost, you may have been able to set up a payment arrangement if you don’t have all of the money at the time. But getting the fine talked down to a fifth of its original cost is virtually unheard of.

    If someone were to knowingly miss jury duty, they could be held in contempt of court, however, most jurisdictions do not send those people to jail. There will be a fine, but it’s unlikely it will be anywhere in the neighborhood of $5000. That notice will also be sent in the mail. When someone has an arrest warrant, police do not give them a courtesy call, they just show up unannounced. If you ever get one of these calls, ask the caller for their call back number, but call your local police department instead.

    If you keep these things in mind, you’ll be prepared if police impersonators ever call.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 5, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Both rich and poor can fall for romance scams 

    By Greg Collier

    Within the past year or so, when it comes to romance scams, all the talk has been around the pig butchering scam. This is when romance scammers get their victims to invest in a phony cryptocurrency exchange. Victims of the pig butchering scam tend to be on the more wealthy side, with victims losing tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of dollars each. This may lull people who don’t make as much money into a false sense of security. But believe us when we say scammers don’t care how much or little you make. They’ll try to take it anyway.

    For example, a man from Tulsa, Oklahoma, recently came forward to his local media about being the victim of a romance scam. The scammers claimed to be a woman in the military stationed in Iraq, and they were lonely and just needed someone to talk to. It quickly became a romantic relationship.

    As with every romance scam, the requests for money eventually happened. The scammer claimed their bank account was frozen, and they needed money to pay for internet in Iraq, so they could keep communicating. Before the man knew it, he was sending gift cards of $100 a month to the scammer. This relationship went on for about 18-months.

    We’re pretty sure the victims of pig butchering scams wish they only lost $100 a month to their scams. However, the victim in today’s story is a man who is disabled and living on a fixed income. To him, this could be the equivalent of the other victims losing six figures to the scammers. He was also probably not the scammer’s only victim. There could be dozens of other victims the scammers are taking $100 a month from. This could add up to thousands of dollars a month very quickly. No matter how much or how little someone makes, scammers will look to take a big chunk of it, if not all of it.

    If you have doubts about someone’s identity, do some research. You can use reverse image searches to check if their profile picture appears elsewhere on the internet. Scammers often use stolen photos. Never send money or gifts to someone you’ve only met online, regardless of their sob story or urgent requests. Scammers often ask for money for emergencies, travel expenses, or to help with various crises. Discuss your online relationships with trusted friends and family members. They can provide valuable perspective and help you stay grounded in reality.

    Remember that scammers are skilled at manipulating emotions and creating elaborate stories. They can be very convincing, so it’s essential to stay vigilant and prioritize your safety when forming online relationships. If you’re unsure about someone’s intentions, seek advice from trusted sources before taking any further steps.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 1, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Grandmother scammed for weeks in AI voice-spoofing scam 

    By Greg Collier

    It’s been a short while since we last discussed the AI voice-spoofing scam. For new readers, this is when scammers obtain a sample of someone’s voice from online, and run it through an AI program, which allows the scammers to make the voice say whatever they want. The scammers then use the person’s voice to convince that person’s loved one to send the scammers money.

    Voice-spoofing is typically used in one of two consumer-level scams. The first one is the virtual kidnapping scam, which is exactly what it sounds like. Scammers will use the spoofed voice to make it sound like somebody’s loved one has been kidnapped, and the scammers will demand a ransom.

    The second scam is the one we’ll be discussing today, which is the grandparent scam. In this scam, the scammers pose as an elderly victim’s grandchild who’s in some kind of legal trouble. The scammers will often ask for bail money or legal fees.

    An elderly woman from Utah recently fell victim to the grandparent scam. Scammers called her on the phone using the cloned voice of one of her granddaughters. The ‘granddaughter’ said she had been arrested after riding in a car with someone who had drugs and needed bail money. A scammer then got on the call and pretended to be the granddaughter’s attorney and instructed the woman on how she could send payment. The woman was also instructed not to tell anyone else in the family, as it could jeopardize the granddaughter’s court case.

    One of the many problems with scammers is if you pay them once, chances are they’ll come back for more money, which is what happened here. For weeks, the phony granddaughter kept calling back needing more money each time for various legal proceedings. Keep in mind that with each conversation, the grandmother is not actually talking to anybody but a computer-generated voice, which sounds exactly like her granddaughter.

    Eventually, the grandmother did grow suspicious and told her son, who informed her she was being scammed.

    Don’t trust your ears when it comes to phone scams. If you receive a call from someone claiming to be a relative or loved one in need of money, it’s important to follow the same precautions, even if the voice sounds exactly like them. Hang up on the call and contact the person who’s supposedly in trouble. If you can’t reach them, ask other family members who might know where they are. Be sure to tell them about the situation you encountered, and never keep it a secret. Lastly, never send money under any circumstances.

     

  • Geebo 5:28 pm on August 31, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Does cryptocurrency automatically mean a scam? 

    Does cryptocurrency automatically mean a scam?

    By Greg Collier

    Ok, we admit that our headline asks a pretty loaded question we’re pretty sure will get some crypto-bros all riled up. We’re not talking about people who legitimately and knowingly invest and trade in cryptocurrencies. Instead, we’re talking about your average consumer, and for them, when someone asks for payment in cryptocurrency, it’s almost always a scam.

    Before cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum became somewhat mainstream, scammers would ask for payment in gift cards because the funds could easily be emptied from the card, and once that happens they’re virtually untraceable. For similar reasons, scammers have started demanding their payments be made in cryptocurrency. While cryptocurrency can technically be traced, the nature of cryptocurrency allows its users to remain pseudonymous.

    The problem for scammers used to be getting their victims to convert their own money into cryptocurrency. Depending on the scam, scammers could walk their victims through an online cryptocurrency exchange, but something easier has come along. Enter the Bitcoin ATM.

    Bitcoin ATMs are kiosks that allow anyone to either buy or sell Bitcoin. At one of these ATMs, someone could enter their Bitcoin wallet information and exchange their Bitcoin for cash. Conversely, someone could purchase Bitcoin by depositing cash into the machine, and that’s where scammers come in.

    For the average consumer, anyone who asks for some kind of payment or transfer in cryptocurrency is a scammer. Businesses won’t ask you to pay your bills in cryptocurrency. Banks will not tell you your money needs to be protected by exchanging it for cryptocurrency. Neither, will the police, the government, or any tech giant like Apple or Microsoft.

    These scams tend to target the elderly due to their perceived lack of knowledge about modern technology. In just the past 24 hours, we found three stories involving elderly victims putting their money into a Bitcoin ATM, which went straight to the scammer’s digital wallet.

    In Kansas City, a man was dumping thousands of dollars of cash into a Bitcoin ATM at a gas station. Thankfully, the clerk noticed what the man was doing and contacted the police. When the police arrived, the man was still on the phone with the scammer. The scammer hung up once the police officers introduced themselves. The man thought he was talking to his bank, who told him to move his money to keep it safe. Again, that’s not a thing banks do.

    In the Reno area of Nevada, an elderly man almost lost $15,000 to scammers. This victim was told their bank account had been connected to criminal activity. Once again, the victim was told to move their money to protect it. In this instance, the scammers could have impersonated law enforcement officers, his bank or both. This man was lucky, as local police got a search warrant for the Bitcoin ATM, and were able to recover his cash. However, that is the exception and not the norm.

    Lastly, a victim from New Jersey lost $25,000 to a Bitcoin ATM scam. This victim received an email that appeared to come from his bank about a transaction they didn’t make. He was also probably asked to deposit the money into a Bitcoin ATM to protect his bank account.

    Scammers are the only ones who insist on receiving payments in cryptocurrency. Any reputable business will never ask you to send cryptocurrency as a prerequisite for making a purchase or ensuring the safety of your funds. Such requests are always indicative of fraudulent activity.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on August 30, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Puppy stolen during scam 

    By Greg Collier

    Previously, we’ve discussed many reasons why you shouldn’t buy a puppy online. In summary, there are two main scams that happen when trying to buy a puppy online. There’s the scam where the puppy doesn’t even exist, but the scammers keep asking victims for additional funds for things like a special shipping crate, traveling insurance for the puppy, etc.

    Then there are the backyard breeders, who are essentially a homegrown puppy mill. They’re the people who just keep breeding puppies in dismal conditions and don’t care about the welfare of the puppies. Often they’ll sell puppies with infectious and sometimes terminal disease.

    But, did you know there’s also a scam that targets people who are selling puppies online? A seller in Cerritos, California, was selling American Bully puppies through Craigslist for $2000. The seller met a woman who wanted to buy one of the puppies in the parking lot of a local mall. The woman asked to pay through Zelle and asked to hold the puppy while the transfer went through. By the time the Zelle transfer was denied, the woman had walked away with the puppy into the mall and fled the scene.

    If we had to hazard a guess, we’d say the scammer will probably try to sell the puppy themselves. If not on Craigslist, then on some other online marketplace. Due to the myriad of animal welfare issues with buying and selling pets online, Geebo.com stopped allowing animals to be listed for sale years ago. Craigslist technically does not allow animal sales, but they have a ‘rehoming fee’ loophole, which users take advantage of.

    Just like with any item, if you’re going to sell a puppy through an online marketplace, the best way to try to prevent a scam is to meet the buyer at a local police station. While not perfect, this will go a long way in discouraging scam artists and thieves from showing up.

     

  • Geebo 8:01 am on August 29, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    VIN cloning and curbstoning used car scams 

    VIN cloning and curbstoning used car scams

    By Greg Collier

    It seems like nothing evokes the feeling of a scam more than buying a used car. Even when using a licensed car dealer, many used car buyers still feel like they’re being scammed in one way or another. Buying from a private seller seems even more fraught with scams these days. So, here are two used car scams you may want to be on the lookout for, as they’re happening in a large part of the country.

    The first scam we’re going to share today is one we’ve discussed before, and it’s called VIN cloning. This is when car thieves steal a car and replace the vehicle identification number (VIN) tags with VIN tags from a similar make and model.

    This scam recently happened to a man in Phoenix. He found a Ford Bronco Raptor for sale on Craigslist for $75,000. When the man went to buy the truck, it had Alaska license plates on it. He was told the truck had been driven to Phoenix from Alaska. The man checked the truck’s history and no red flags appeared. He was even able to get the truck registered and insured with no problem.

    It wasn’t until the man tried to trade in the truck at a dealership when a technician found a discrepancy in the VIN tags. The truck had been part of a massive car theft incident in Detroit, where numerous vehicles had been stolen from the Ford factory. Police took possession of the truck, which resulted in the man being out $75,000.

    Unfortunately, there was not much the man could have done to protect himself. He did all his due diligence, and still fell victim to a rather costly scam. The only thing we can recommend is to avoid buying cars through Craigslist.

    However, not many people can readily purchase a $75,000 truck. Many people just need a vehicle to take them to work or take their kids to school. And without a car, they may have no way of getting one. It’s difficult to do much of anything without a car in most of the country.

    Scammers are preying upon people like this by selling them mechanically failing cars in a process called ‘curbstoning’. Curbstoning takes place when an individual without a dealer license engages in selling vehicles, often utilizing social media advertisements as a medium, and deliberately hides any underlying mechanical problems. The most significant warning sign in this situation is that the seller avoids transferring the car’s ownership into their name before completing a sale.

    When someone has a desperate enough need for a vehicle, they may ignore any red flags that happen in a car sale like this. The danger is these cars could end up costing them more eventually due to mechanical failures or issues with registration and insurance.

    To safeguard yourself from curbstoning, it’s essential to ensure that the seller possesses the title, and the name listed on that document corresponds with the name on the seller’s driver’s license.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on August 28, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    40 Marketplace scam victims show up to woman’s home 

    (Stock Photo)

    By Greg Collier

    If you saw an and for a used washer and dryer for sale on Facebook Marketplace for $250, you probably wouldn’t give it any other thought. After all, it’s only $250, what scam could the seller possibly try to pull for that amount of money. You’d be partially right, as the scam didn’t take $250 from victims. It only took $125 from victims, and there we’re a lot of victims. A quick estate believes the scammers made at least $5000. And one victim didn’t lose any money but has lost the peace and quiet of her home.

    In the Atlanta area, the aforementioned washer and dryer was listed for sale for $250 on Marketplace. As you may have guessed, there wasn’t any washer or dryer for sale. It was a scam listing designed to get deposits out of victims. The scammers asked for a deposit of half the price before allowing the appliances to be picked up.

    While the article doesn’t state it, the scammers were more than likely collecting payment on personal payment apps like Venmo or Cash App.

    When the scammers would give their victims an address where they can pick the items up, they gave them a random address in Atlanta. This address belonged to a woman who had no idea scammers were using it until people started showing up to her home looking for a washer and dryer. This has been going on for weeks, with at least 40 victims showing up to her home looking to pick up a washer and dryer. She’s even had the listing removed from Facebook, but the scammers keep putting up new ones. She’s posted a sign in her front yard warning victims there in no washer/dryer, and they’ve been scammed.

    Thankfully, there have been no incidents at the woman’s home. In the past, we have seen some incidents where the scam victim refuses to believe they’ve been scammed, and have become belligerent with the homeowner.

    It doesn’t matter what item is for sale online, there can be a scam attached to it. In this instance, the victims paid a deposit before seeing the product in person. We can almost guarantee the scammers had some kind of story as to why they couldn’t deliver the item.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on August 25, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Can you get your gift card money back after a scam? 

    Can you get your gift card money back after a scam?

    By Greg Collier

    We’ve often said gift cards are the currency of scammers. This is because once scammers get the funds from the card, that money is typically gone forever. Victims usually had little to no recourse once scammers emptied the cards. However, a recent news report claims that better protections are coming for gift card buyers.

    There was a time when gift cards were used in just about any scam. A scammer would pose as some business or authority and demand payment in gift cards. The victim would be asked to read the numbers from the cards to the scammer. From there, the scammers would make immediate purchases using the cards, then sell the essentially stolen items.

    Now, according to CBS News, companies that issue gift cards are stepping up efforts to combat gift card scams. Large companies are named in this report, such as Amazon, Apple, Target, and Walmart. The report states that companies are now flagging or freezing transactions used with stolen gift cards.

    While that may be true, it seems the directions for a victim to get their money back is nothing new. According to the FTC, who was quoted by CBS News, the first thing a victim should do is contact the card’s issuer to notify them of the stolen cards. Then the FTC goes on to state if the scammer has not drained the card yet, the victim may get their money back.

    The problem with this procedure is there is a tiny window between the time the card numbers are given to the scammer, and the time the cards are emptied. Unfortunately, some victims don’t even realize they’ve been scammed until days later, if at all. If a victim isn’t calling a card issuer within minutes after being scammed, their money will probably never be recouped.

    The best protection against a gift card scam is to recognize it before it happens. Gift cards should only be used as gifts and should only be redeemed at the outlets they’re intended for. They can’t be used to pay police or any other law enforcement agency. They can’t be used for any kind of debt that someone is trying to collect. If someone asks you for gift cards, and they’re not intended as gifts, the odds are you’re talking to a scammer.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on August 24, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Grim scam targets Maui residents 

    Grim scam targets Maui residents

    By Greg Collier

    The poor people of Maui. If it wasn’t bad enough that they’ve suffered through the country’s worst wildfire in a century, they’ve had to protect themselves from a plague of scammers. If it’s not mortgage scammers, charity scammers, or FEMA impersonators, it’s predatory people trying to buy their property for pennies on the dollar. Now, the people of Maui are being targeted by one of the most deplorable scams we’ve seen yet.

    As you may know, over 100 people lost their lives in the fire, with over 1,000 still missing. Countless families are looking for some kind of closure, whether it’s to reunite with them or lay them to rest. Due to the nature of the fire, many remains have yet to be identified. Enter the scammers.

    According to Maui County officials, some residents have been receiving calls from someone claiming to be from ‘DNA Services’. These calls are believed to be offering residents assistance in help identifying the remains of their loved ones, for a fee, of course. The county claims this is a scam and should be reported to local police at their non-emergency number.

    Currently, there is only one official location that is helping residents identify loved ones. That’s the Family Assistance Center at the Hyatt Regency’s Monarchy Ballroom in Kaanapali.

    We don’t often get emotional here, but this may just be the most reprehensible scam we’ve ever heard of. This may even top the recent spate of funeral home scams.

    The people of Maui still need our help. It’s been recommended that if you want to donate to help the people of Maui directly, the best place to donate is the Maui Food Bank.

     

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