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  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 16, 2022 Permalink | Reply
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    A good change in Social Security brings out the scammers 

    A good change in Social Security brings out the scammers

    By Greg Collier

    The most impersonated government agencies are the IRS, Social Security, and Medicare. Scammers often use these three offices to intimidate their victims into doing what they want. I mean, who wants to be contacted by the IRS? They typically use the other two offices to intimidate older Americans or the disabled into thinking they’re either going to lose their benefits, or they make benefit promises that are better than what the government is offering. Whenever the law or policy changes happen within one of these offices, the scammers are right on top of it, looking to use it to take advantage of their victims.

    At the end of this year, millions of Social Security beneficiaries will be receiving an almost 9% cost of living increase in their benefits. If a beneficiary is eligible for this increase, there is nothing they have to do. They will receive it automatically. Scammers will contact their victims posing as the SSA. They’ll tell their victims they need their personal information, a payment, or both to receive the increase. This could lead to the victim’s identity being stolen, or the loss of hundreds if not thousands of dollars.

    To better protect yourself or someone you know from this scam, the best thing to do is keep in mind that government agencies like this will not reach out to citizens first. Unless you already have an ongoing matter with Social Security, they will not just call someone out of the blue. Most government agencies will contact someone by postal mail if they need to be notified. Also, no one should have to give their personal information to the SSA, as they should already have it if you’re a beneficiary. If you receive a call from someone claiming to be from the SSA, hang up and contact the SSA at 1-800-772-1213, or their contact page at SSA.gov.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 15, 2022 Permalink | Reply
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    Why are online shoppers getting a cardboard square in the mail? 

    Why are online shoppers getting a cardboard square in the mail?

    By Greg Collier

    There have been reports from around the country of online shoppers receiving a weird delivery in their mail. Consumers who have used large online retail outlets like Amazon, eBay, and Walmart have reportedly been getting envelopes which have nothing in them but a cardboard square. To make matters more puzzling, they’re all supposedly coming from the same address in Nebraska. Is this some elaborate prank, or is there something more insidious at play?

    According to security experts, this is another version of the brushing scam. The brushing scam always involves getting items from retailers the recipients didn’t even order. This is largely done through Amazon, but has been known to be done through other online retailers. However, it’s not Amazon or other online retailers who are mailing out cardboard squares, the brushing scam is usually committed by third-party vendors who sell their items through retailers like Amazon.

    The reason vendors do this is to increase visibility of their product, although in an underhanded way. First, the vendors make it appear as if the recipient is a verified buyer of the item. This way, the vendors can put fake five-star reviews for their items in the recipient’s name. In turn, this increases the visibility of their item on websites like Amazon.

    Sometimes, the recipients will get a package that doesn’t even have the item that’s supposedly being sold. Instead, recipients will get something lightweight like a pair of cheap sunglasses, or in this case, a cardboard square. Scammers don’t want to actually use their money to pay for the postage quality items need.

    So, what does this mean for you if you receive an unordered item like this? The good news is you can keep the item you’ve received. The bad news is your online shopping accounts may have been compromised. Check your accounts like Amazon, eBay, Walmart, and the like to make sure no purchases have been made without your knowledge. If there has, contact that retailer’s customer service immediately. If not, you’ll want to at least change the password on your retail accounts.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 14, 2022 Permalink | Reply
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    Even businesses should watch out for check washing 

    Even businesses should watch out for check washing

    By Greg Collier

    Writing personal checks has largely become a relic of the past. However, there are still enough people writing checks that check washing has been rampant lately. Check washing is when a check is stolen either from a home’s mailbox or a postal mailbox. The check is then dipped in a chemical solution which removes the ink. The thieves can then rewrite the check for any amount they want as long as the funds are available. This has largely affected older consumers, who still send checks through the mail.

    However, even though check writing has fallen in popularity with consumers, it’s still a common practice by businesses. If businesses need to pay their vendors, it is still often done by check. This can make them a prime target for check washing.

    For example, a woman from Detroit is a member of her condo’s board association. She wrote a check for $525 to a vendor and mailed the check at a mailbox outside the Post Office. A thief had fished the envelope containing the check out of the mailbox. The check was washed and rewritten for $18,000 before being cashed in New York. To make matters worse, the board’s bank is allegedly dragging their feet in helping them get their money back.

    Much like for consumers, the warning for businesses are largely the same. If you’re still using handwritten checks, there are special pens you can purchase that are resistant to check washing. Some experts say that gel pens and fountain pens are resistant to the check washing process.

    Also, if your business isn’t large enough to have your mail picked up securely by USPS, go inside your local post office to have the checks mailed. Outdoor mailboxes have become vulnerable to thieves in recent years. Check washing has become such a problem, experts say that $1 billion was lost to the scam last year alone.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 13, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: Best Buy, , , , ,   

    You probably don’t have a Geek Squad subscription 

    By Greg Collier

    Tech support scams have been a blight on both smartphone and computer users for years. As much as we hate to say it, this goes doubly so for elderly users of these devices. Currently, the most common tech support scam is the pop-up scam. This is when a computer user gets a pop-up on their display that tells them their computer has been infected with a virus, and they need to call the phone number on the pop-up to have it resolved. Typically, the phone number claims to go to Microsoft, but they can also claim to be from any large tech company. If someone were to call the number from the pop-up, they’d be talking to scammers who would swindle their victims of their savings.

    However, there is a tech support scam that is a close second to the pop-up scam in the frequency with which it occurs. The difference with this scam is that it’s a phishing scam. Phishing scams are where scammers send out emails or other messages hoping to catch a victim on their proverbial hooks. This specific phishing attack uses the name of Geek Squad, which is the computer repair service arm of Best Buy.

    Scammers have been sending out emails that say your Geek Squad subscription is about to run out. The email continues with the claim that you’ll be charged several hundred dollars if you don’t cancel your subscription. The email contains a phone number to call if you want to cancel your subscription or dispute the charge. Much like the pop-up scam, the phone number leads to scammers instead of Geek Squad or Best Buy. From there, the scammers can commit a number of frauds by either taking control of the computer, getting your financial information, or both.

    Before calling any number, think back. Have you taken any device to the Geek Squad for any kind of service? If not, the email is almost certainly part of a scam. If you’re unsure, go over your financial records to see if any payments have been made to Geek Squad in the past. If not, then this is probably a scam email.

    It’s good general advice to never call any number or click on any link in an email that’s asking you for money. These emails can look like they’ve been sent by any number of legitimate companies. Instead of using the information in the email, go to the company’s website and instead contact them through official means at their website.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 12, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , , , , , , US Attorney's Office,   

    Scam Round Up: Taylor Swift ticket scam and more 

    By Greg Collier

    This week in the Round Up, we’re going over some familiar scams with a slight twist to each of them.

    ***

    As we keep saying, the most common scam out there is probably the arrest warrant scam. Not a day goes by where we don’t see this scam in the headlines from somewhere in the country. Typically, scammers will pose as your local police department when they call a victim. The scammers will then demand money over an arrest warrant that doesn’t actually exist. More often than not, the scammers will tell the victim they’ve missed jury duty. In many jurisdictions, missing jury duty is no longer an arrestable offense, although you can be fined. However, you would receive a notice in the mail and not an officer calling you on the phone.

    Anyway, some scammers have turned up the pressure on their victims by claiming to be from a much higher law enforcement office than your local police department. Some scammers are claiming to be calling from the US Attorney’s Office, demanding their victims pay ‘legal fees’. The caller ID On these calls is spoofed to make it appear like the calls are coming from the US Attorney’s Office.

    Always keep in mind, no law enforcement office will ever call you demanding money. That goes for the smallest police departments in the most rural towns, up to and including the higher echelons of law enforcement like the FBI.

    ***

    There’s actually some good news on the puppy scam front. According to a recent report from the Better Business Bureau, puppy scams are actually on the decline. We’re specifically talking about the scam where victims pay for a puppy they find online, only to find out the puppy doesn’t exist. In many instances of this scam, once the scammer receives the initial payment, they’ll try to get more money from the victim by asking for more money for things like delivery insurance or special transport crates.

    And that’s where the bad news comes in. The reason puppy scams are on the decline is that scammers are taking more money from victims than before.

    If you’re in the market for a puppy, do not send any money to anyone without seeing the puppy in person first. Try to stick to local breeders or your local shelter.

    ***

    There’s no bigger star in today’s music industry than Taylor Swift. Tickets for her latest concert tour went on sale back in November, and quickly sold out. If you’re still looking to snag some tickets to this premium event, be careful where you try to get them from.

    A New Jersey woman thought she was buying tickets from another member of a Facebook group she belonged to. The woman sent $1500 through Zelle, for the tickets. She never received the tickets, and the scammer kept asking her for more money. If scammers can fool someone once, they’ll often try to get more money out of their victims.

    If you’re trying to buy tickets to any event that is in high demand, stick to reputable retailers. Also, never send money through Zelle to someone you don’t know personally.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 9, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , , , , wrestling,   

    Wrestling with the romance scam 

    By Greg Collier

    When we discuss the romance scam, we generally tell our readers that there are certain occupations the scammers claim to be a part of. Typically, the scammers claim to be in the military, overseas business moguls, or oil rig workers. This gives them built-in excuses for why they can never meet their supposed romantic partners face to face. It also gives the scammers built-in reasons to keep asking their victims for money. But recently, we’ve heard of a romance scam using an occupation we haven’t heard about being used in the scam before.

    In a suburb of Detroit, a 75-year-old man lost $80,000 to a romance scammer. The man met the scammer on Instagram, who was posing as a woman. The scammer sent a direct message to the man saying that she was having problems with her bank account. She asked the man for money to help her get to her job, which required traveling.

    This relationship lasted for 6 months. The victim had sent the scammer cash and pre-paid gift cards. In return, the scammer said she was eventually going to move to Michigan to be with the man and marry him.

    When the man’s own money ran out, he had borrowed $5000 from friends.

    It wasn’t detailed how the man discovered he was being scammed.

    The hook in this story is that the scammer was posing as a women’s professional wrestler who worked for the WWE. Again, if it wasn’t for the fact that a man lost $80,000, we’d almost give credit to the scammer for picking such a unique profession to use in a scam. Pro wrestlers are constantly on the road, with some working 300 dates a year. This gives the scammer another excuse as to why they can’t meet in person.

    Unfortunately, pro wrestlers are no strangers to being used as part of a scam. Scammers often imitate some of the top names in the industry to try to scam wrestling fans. And sometimes these scams can have dangerous results for the wrestlers involved.

    Last year, a fan jumped the barricade at a WWE show in New York, and attacked WWE Superstar Seth Rollins. The fan had been scammed by a social media account that was imitating Rollins online. Thankfully, neither Rollins nor the fan were injured.

    This story also speaks to another problem of the romance scam, and that’s the celebrity impersonator. No matter how minor the celebrity may be, they’re never going to reach out to individual fans for romantic reasons or otherwise.

    And as far as romance scams go, if the person you’re having an online relationship keeps putting off a face-to-face meeting, there’s a great possibility they’re a scammer. No matter how charming they might be, never send money to someone you don’t know personally that you’ve never met in real life. Lastly, always do a reverse image search on their picture to make sure they haven’t stolen the picture from someone else.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 8, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , Kroger's, ,   

    There’s no free lunch, but are there free groceries? 

    There's no free lunch, but are there free groceries?

    By Greg Collier

    We could all use a break on our grocery bills. Food prices have been the highest they’ve been in years and are only recently have they started to come down. Well, what if a major supermarket chain was willing to give you a coupon for $150 off your order? The store is celebrating their 140th anniversary after all. And you found this great deal on Facebook, what could go wrong? All you have to do to get that kind of discount is enter your personal information on a third-party website. What could the harm be to get those kinds of savings? A lot, actually.

    Kroger is one of the largest supermarket chains in the country. They’re also often the target of hoax coupons like the one mentioned above. Currently, there is one of these coupons circulating on social media that promises a $150 coupon in honor of the chain’s anniversary. If you were to follow a link that promises one of these coupons, you wouldn’t be taken to Kroger’s website. Instead, you’d be taken to a scammer’s website, where you’ll be asked for some personal information in exchange for the coupon. If personal information is entered into the scammer’s website, you’ll more than likely have your identity stolen.

    If you think about it, no supermarket is going to offer $150 off to millions of its customers. While it sounds like a great deal, that’s not how supermarkets make money. Kroger isn’t the only retailer to be targeted in scams like this. Costco also finds itself as targets of this scam. The name of any large retailer can be used in this scam, and probably has.

    According to experts, if the value of a coupon is almost the amount of an item or order, it could be a scam. No consumer should have to exchange sensitive information for a coupon. If you have any questions about a store’s coupon, don’t hesitate to contact the customer service number on the store’s website.

    And as always, while it is a cliché, the adage of ‘if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is’ really applies here.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 7, 2022 Permalink | Reply
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    Scammers: “How much are your children worth?” 

    Scammers: "How much are your children worth?"

    By Greg Collier

    We’ve been posting about the virtual kidnapping scam for a few years now. If you’re unfamiliar with this particular scam, this is where scammers claim to have kidnapped a loved one and demand a ransom. However, the scammers are bluffing, and are hoping you’ll panic enough that you’ll pay them. Within the past few months, a new and disturbing version of this scam has emerged. Instead of the scammers claiming they’ve kidnapped your spouse or parent, they’re now claiming they’ve kidnapped your child.

    We first saw reports of this scam coming out of the Northeast. It wasn’t long before the scam spread to the Southwest. More recently, it has found its way to California, making this a coast-to-coast scam. That means there’s nothing stopping it from showing up in any community.

    Police in Nevada County, California, have received multiple calls from parents of school age children. The parents have said they received phone calls from people who claimed to have kidnapped their children. According to police, the scammers weren’t able to provide any identifying information about the children they supposedly kidnapped. So, it seems like they were unsuccessful this time. That’s not always the case, though.

    In previous scam attempts, scammers were able to identify the children by name. More than likely, these scammers obtained information on the children through social media. Scammers even spoofed the child’s phone number to make it look like the call came from the child’s phone.

    Authorities in California has recommended to parents they should install a tracking/GPS app on their child’s phone. This way, if the parent receives one of these ransom calls, they can tell where their child is at that time. In most of the previous cases, the children were safe at school.

    If you’re a parent of school age children, you may not be able to avoid scam calls like this. However, you can take steps to prevent yourself from being scammed. If you receive one of these calls, try not to panic, and call your child’s school to make sure they are still there. Also, try to limit what information is shared about your child on social media. That includes talking to your children to let them know what information is ok to share and what isn’t.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 6, 2022 Permalink | Reply
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    Beware when buying gift cards for the holidays 

    Beware when buying gift cards for the holidays

    By Greg Collier

    Gift cards are one of the most talked about topics on this blog. Typically, it’s because gift cards are the currency of scammers. If someone asks you to pay them in gift cards, you’re likely being scammed. However, there is another problem with gift cards, even if you’re buying them for their intended purpose.

    Scammers and other cybercriminals will go into stores and record the information from the back of gift cards. They’ll then wait for someone to put funds on those cards. Once that’s done, the scammers will use the funds on those cards for themselves.

    This recently happened to a mother from the San Francisco Bay Area who was trying to buy Apple gift cards for her daughter. She bought a card at a supermarket and put $100 on it. When her daughter went to use the card, the funds were already gone. The mother then went to a pharmacy to get another Apple gift card, and again by the time she gave the card to her daughter it was already empty. She was eventually able to get a legitimate card from an Apple Store.

    Gift card scammers will often go into various stores and scratch the security strip from the card. They’ll document the card number before replacing the security strip with a sticker.

    There are some ways to protect yourself against this scam. First, you should always make sure the card has not been tampered with by inspecting the back of the card. Take a handful of cards from the rack and make sure they’re similarly marked on the back. Scammers will often place tampered cards up front to get the money quicker. Try purchasing a card from the middle of the pack instead.

    When buying gift cards, pay for them with a credit card whenever possible. A credit card will give you better protection against loss than if you had paid for the cards with cash or a debit card.

    If you receive a card that’s been emptied, you can try to contact the customer service number that’s on the back of the card. However, they can rarely ever get the money back or offer a refund.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 5, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , , , ,   

    Victim robbed of $15K in used car scam 

    Victim robbed of $15K in used car scam

    By Greg Collier

    Most of the scams we discuss don’t often put you in any kind of physical danger. Unfortunately, there are a handful that can do just that. If you’re a frequent buyer or seller using online marketplace platforms, you may know exactly what we’re talking about. Throughout the life of Craigslist, there have been over 100 homicides connected to the site. OfferUp has had some violent crimes attached to it as well. Many of these murders have come from robberies gone bad, where either the buyer or the seller has been fatally injured. Even today, these kinds of crimes continue to persist even with a platform like Facebook Marketplace.

    A woman from Michigan saved up $15,000 to purchase a new car. She found one on Marketplace for just the right price. However, the car was four hours away in Cincinnati, Ohio. The woman took her parents with her when she went to meet the seller of the car. The victim got into the truck of the seller to exchange the money, since they had met in a parking lot. It was at this point, the seller pointed a gun at the woman’s head and robbed her of the $15,000 in cash. The thief is still at large as of the last report and may have victimized other Marketplace users. Thankfully, the victim was physically unharmed.

    Thieves often advertise used cars as a way to lure their victims. They do this in order to ensure their victims are carrying large amounts of cash. But as we said, many times these encounters can turn lethal. Sometimes there is a struggle for the gun, other times the thieves didn’t want to leave any witnesses.

    This doesn’t happen with just used cars, either. It can happen with any type of transaction facilitated through an online marketplace. It used to be recommended to users to meet the other person in daylight at a busy part of town. Those suggestions don’t apply anymore, as the thieves have become so brazen to steal and sometimes kill in broad daylight.

    The best way to protect yourself during one of these exchanges is to meet the other person at a local police department. In the article we linked to above, a Cincinnati police detective even said that they don’t think there isn’t a police department in Ohio that wouldn’t be willing to have the exchange made there.

    This isn’t a guarantee that someone won’t try to rob you, but it goes a long way in discouraging many that would.

     

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