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  • Geebo 9:00 am on March 7, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Thousands lost in SIM-swapping attack 

    Thousands lost in SIM-swapping attack

    By Greg Collier

    If you own a smartphone, how lost would you be without it? We’re not talking about losing your phone in the couch cushions. We mean, how much would your personal life be at risk if your phone was stolen. For many, their smartphone is the only device they need to conduct their lives. For even more, their entire lives are contained in their smartphone. Bank accounts, email, family photos, and schedules are just a few of things that could be accessed through a stolen smartphone. Now, what if we told you that you can lose all these things from your phone without physically losing the device?

    SIM-swapping is a type of cybercrime where an attacker takes control of a victim’s mobile phone number by tricking the victim’s mobile carrier into transferring the number to a new SIM card. Once the attacker has control of the phone number, they can use it to access the victim’s online accounts, such as email, social media, and financial accounts, which often rely on text messaging for two-factor authentication. Then the attacker can not only access your accounts, but they can lock you out of them as well.

    Recently, a man from Colorado lost $24,500 out of his savings account after his phone received a SIM-swapping attack. The victim received an email from his bank that a large transfer was being made, but by the time he was able to contact his bank, the transfer had already gone through. You can almost imagine the shock on his face when he tried to call his bank, only to find out his phone had no service.

    There are several effective ways to protect yourself from SIM-swapping. One is to use an authenticator app instead of relying on text messages for two-factor authentication. Authenticator apps are linked to a device instead of a phone number, making them more secure. Additionally, it’s important to avoid using accurate information for security questions on online accounts, such as high school mascots or pet names, as this information can often be found on social media. Lastly, you can contact your carrier and request that they disallow any device switches on your account, but keep in mind that to unfreeze your account, you may need to visit a carrier store and present identification.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on March 6, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    AI voices used in grandparent scam 

    AI voices used in grandparent scam

    By Greg Collier

    If you follow the tech news at all, you’ll no doubt have heard about how artificial intelligence (AI) has become increasingly popular in the past year or so. You may have heard of the art generator known as DALL-E. It can produce images using any prompt you can give it. For example, the above picture was generated with an AI program called Stable Diffusion, using the prompt of ‘AI Voice’. You may have also heard of ChatGPT, a text-based AI that can generate just about anything in text form. Do you want to craft a professional sounding email to your boss? ChatGPT can generate that for you. Do you want ChatGPT to craft the lyrics of a song in the style of The Doors about soup? It can do that too.

    However, the more important question is, is AI advanced enough to be used in scams? Yes, it is.

    This past weekend, The Washington Post published a story about AI being used in one of the more common scams we post about, the grandparent scam. For those who may be unfamiliar, The grandparent scam is a type of phone scam where fraudsters impersonate a grandchild or other family member in distress to trick elderly individuals into sending them money. Typically, scammers will tell their elderly victims that they’ve had some kind of facial injury such as a broken nose as to why their voice sounds different from their actual grandchild.

    According to the Post, scammers are now using AI voice-cloning technology to sound exactly like the person they’re impersonating. Victims from both Canada and the United States have lost thousands of dollars to scammers using this technology.

    While voice cloning technology is nothing new, it has advanced exponentially in the past couple of years. It used to be someone would need vast amounts of recordings to accurately clone someone’s voice. Now, it only takes a 30-second recording to do so. If someone you know has posted a video or recording of themselves on social media where they’re talking, their voice can now be cloned.

    You can still protect yourself from this scam, as long as you disregard what your ears are telling you. If you receive a call from a relative or loved one asking for money because they’re in trouble, you should still follow the same precautions, even if it 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. Tell them the exact situation you encountered, and never keep it a secret. Lastly, never send money under any means.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on March 3, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Scammers try to sell Airbnb homes 

    Scammers try to sell Airbnb homes

    By Greg Collier

    Some say there are numerous problems with short-term rental services like Airbnb. For example, some critics say the homes could be put to better use as family homes than short-term rentals. Especially while the country is in a housing crisis. Others say that Airbnb renters can be disruptive and destructive to residential neighborhoods. There’s also the problem of Airbnb hosts who rent out properties that are either below living standards or are misrepresented in the listing. Now, Airbnb can add one more problem to the list.

    According to a report out of Portland, Oregon, Airbnb hosts have come across a new scam that could put their rental property in jeopardy. Multiple hosts have reported renting their units out to renters who turn out to be scammers. The scammers then pose as real estate agents and hold showings or open houses of the rental property. The properties are being listed on a real estate website that only deals with sales by the homeowners. Scammers are listing the homes at ridiculously low prices and are offering to sell them for cash in hand to only first-time homebuyers.

    One Airbnb host was able to record a scammer showing the property to first-time buyers through a security camera. Where the camera was installed in the Airbnb is unknown.

    If you’re an Airbnb host, it’s recommended you routinely check to make sure the property isn’t being listed for sale on sites like Zillow, Craigslist, and Facebook Marketplace.

    If you’re a first-time homebuyer, try to avoid listings that are well below market value. Also, do plenty of research on the property first before making any payments. While paying for a home in full is the dream of every homeowner, finding a cheap home in good condition is more the exception than the rule. And the odds that you found the exception are very low.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on March 2, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Scammers will sell the land out from under you 

    Scammers will sell the land out from under you

    By Greg Collier

    There are any told number of real estate scams. The most common one has to be the rental scam. This is when scammers will advertise a home for rent even though they don’t own the property. This is done so the scammer can obtain money from their victims in the guise of rent or deposits. The rental scam has led to many families being left homeless after losing the last of their money to the scammer.

    More recently, there has been a new real estate scam that’s making the rounds. It’s not as common as the rental scam, but its victims could still suffer from devastating financial effects. Real estate scammers are now targeting vacant lots. It doesn’t matter whether the lot is for sale or not, scammers will try to sell it as if they own it. This could lead to not only the buyer being swindled out of thousands of dollars, but it could also leave legitimate owners with a nightmare of a legal battle.

    So, how are scammers getting away with this? Not to give them any credit, but they’re really putting in the work on this one. When the scammers find a vacant property with no construction on it, they’ll find out who the owner is. This can be found out through publicly available information. The scammers will steal the identity of the owner and forge identification in the owner’s name. This way, the scammers can list the property for sale with a realtor while appearing to be the owner. Often, the scammers won’t even be in the same area as the lot or the realtor, and will typically communicate through means like emails and text messages.

    There were two reported incidents of this scam happening this week. One happened in New Orleans before the owner was notified by a friend. The other happened in the Washington, DC area, where the buyers realized it was a scam after the seller was unable to answer questions about the property.

    To protect yourself, it’s recommended for buyers to get title insurance. This protects buyers from losing money in a phony sale. For owner’s it’s not so easy. In their case, they have to trust that the local realtors do enough research, so they won’t list a lot for sale that isn’t.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on March 1, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Bank to scam victim: “This is on you. We’re out.” 

    By Greg Collier

    Just the other day, we posted a story about how banks are reluctant to reimburse scam victims. This was after stories we posted about how one bank accused a scam victim of being the scammer, and another where scam victims were suing their bank for failing to protect their accounts. The question we keep asking is why can’t the banks stop or reverse these transactions?

    The usual M.O. of scammers involves contacting their targets through calls or messages, inquiring about recent significant transactions. Subsequently, the scammers coerce the victims into believing that transferring their funds to a different account is the sole method of safeguarding their bank accounts. Invariably, the account that the money is relocated to is under the control of the scammer. The bank accounts utilized by scammers are typically not offshore accounts. Instead, they are often regular checking accounts that are available through major banks.

    In a recent bank impersonation scam, two of the nation’s major banks were used. A woman from Seattle got a text that appeared to come from Chase Bank. The text asked her if she had just made a $99 purchase in Florida. The woman called the number back where the text came from and thought she was talking to Chase, but was actually talking to a scammer. The scammer told that to protect her account, she would need to make two $15,000 wire transfers to a Wells Fargo account.

    After realizing she had been scammed, she immediately called Chase Bank and was transferred between eight different departments before someone could help her. By the time she got somebody on the line, the transactions to Wells Fargo had already gone through. Chase told her she would need to fill out paperwork before they could investigate, and that would take at least a week. Chase then allegedly passed the buck, no pun intended, to Wells Fargo. The victim was essentially told that it would depend on Wells Fargo on whether she would get her money back. When she asked Chase for some documentation, she was reportedly told, “We don’t provide that, and we’re out. This is on you.”

    Banks contact customers all the time if they believe a fraudulent purchase or transaction has been made. So, why weren’t either bank suspicious about two wire transfers that totaled $30,000? Why aren’t these transactions being put on hold when a customer claims they’ve been defrauded? And again, why are the banks allowing scammers to open and close bank accounts so quickly?

    If you get a text that looks like it came from your bank asking about a fraudulent transaction, don’t use the callback feature in the text. If someone calls you claiming to be from your bank about fraudulent activity, hang up. Then dial your bank directly at the phone number on the back of your debit card.

    The only way to try to prevent financial loss from these scams is to protect yourself, since it doesn’t appear the banks will go out of their way to help.

     

  • Geebo 9:01 am on February 28, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Rideshare drivers used in multi-state scams 

    Rideshare drivers used in multi-state scams

    By Greg Collier

    It wasn’t too long ago when we wondered if scammers were putting rideshare drivers in danger. That’s because scammers are using rideshare drivers as unwitting couriers or chauffeurs. In most instances, the scammers will use rideshares like Uber and Lyft to collect packages of cash from their victims. In other instances, scammers have sent rideshares to their victims’ homes, so the victim can be taken to the bank to get more money for the scammers. This has led to confusion on the part of police, where they don’t know whether the rideshare driver is involved in the scam or not. While no driver that we know of has been injured by police, it can only take one wrong move for the situation to escalate in violence.

    More recently, we’ve learned that not only are the scammers using rideshare drivers as couriers, but the drivers are being asked to drive across state lines to deliver stolen cash. In Western, Pennsylvania, an elderly woman lost $25,000 in a grandparent scam. Believing her grandson was in legal trouble, she gave a package with the money inside to a rideshare driver that the scammers had called for her.

    As can be usual with scammers, once they took money from the victim once, they tried to get more. When the new driver showed up to collect the package, he told the grandmother that his destination was somewhere in New Jersey. If you’re not familiar with the geography of the Northeast, that’s roughly a 12-hour round trip, depending on where in New Jersey the driver was headed. Let’s say that the driver was going from Pittsburgh to Atlantic City. Not only is that a 12-hour or more round trip depending on traffic, but it’s also a $1000 trip. The scammers can afford it since they’re getting thousands of dollars from their victims.

    In case you were wondering, like we were, rideshare drivers get around 25% of the fare. So, a trip from Pittsburgh to Atlantic City would be a thousand dollars, but the driver would have to drive for 12 hours. That comes out to $250 for the driver, which is around $21/hr. This does not take gas and tolls that the driver would need to pay out of their own pocket. We’d love to hear from rideshare drivers if this would be a fare they would be interested in taking. Is it worth the money?

    Thankfully, the second driver was stopped by police after the grandmother realized she had been scammed. State Troopers escorted the driver to New Jersey, where they arrested two men alleged to be behind the scam.

    While both Lyft and Uber both have parcel delivery services, we would suggest that both companies need to educate their drivers on how to be on the lookout for scams and illegal activity. Maybe have their drivers go through a checklist with the sender about various scams, such as the grandparent scam. Such a small step could go a long way in helping prevent scam victims from losing their money.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on February 27, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Banks refuse to reimburse scam victims 

    By Greg Collier

    It’s been over a year and a half since we started seeing a spate of bank impersonation scams. The bank impersonation scam is a type of fraud where scammers impersonate your bank’s fraud department. Typically, the scammers will call or text their victims, asking them if they’ve recently made large purchases or transfers. Then the scammers tell their victims that the only way to protect bank accounts is to move the money to another account. The bank account the money is moved to always belongs to a scammer.

    For example, a young woman from North Carolina was in the process of saving up for her wedding in the Fall. She received a phone call from someone who claimed to be from her bank, Wells Fargo. The caller told the woman, someone from Colombia was trying to take thousands of dollars out of the woman’s account. Like many scam victims, the woman was told to download an app called AnyDesk, which allows a computer or phone to be accessed remotely. Before she knew it, the scammer had cleaned out the woman’s bank account of close to $10,000.

    Since these scams started garnering headlines, the banks have been reluctant to reimburse scam victims. The banks tend to claim, since the customer authorized the transfer, even if tricked into doing so, their hands are tied. Some customers got their money back from the banks after taking their stories to their local news stations. Now, it seems, the banks aren’t refunding those customers either. The bride to be from North Carolina was told by Wells Fargo that she wouldn’t be getting her money back, even after contacting Wells Fargo and the police immediately after being scammed. She went to a local news station who contacted Wells Fargo. Wells Fargo’s response was that they were working to raise awareness about these scams. That’s all well and good, but it doesn’t get the customer’s money back.

    And what about the bank accounts the scammers are transferring the victim’s money to? These aren’t overseas bank accounts. Often these bank accounts are just your normal checking account you can get with any one of the major banks. Why are these accounts being allowed to be opened and closed so quickly?

    In the future, banks need to be more transparent not only with their rules regarding scam victims, but also what they’re doing to try to prevent customers from being scammed. Just claiming that they’re raising awareness doesn’t cut it.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on February 24, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Don’t use CashApp for rental deposits 

    Don't use CashApp for rental deposits

    By Greg Collier

    Yesterday, we discussed one of the oldest scams that plagues online marketplaces. That was the used car scam. Today, we’ll be discussing the one scam which has been appearing on online marketplaces even longer, the rental scam. Since the dawn of online classifieds, scammers have been renting properties that don’t even own to unsuspecting victims.

    For a little context, in the early days, scammers would list a home for rent on sites like craigslist. The listed rent price would be well below market value to entice anyone in the market for a new home. When the prospective renter would ask to inspect the home, a popular answer the scammers would give is that they’re missionaries who are currently working overseas. The scammer would then promise the renters they would send them the keys to the home once they received the security deposit payment that was typically sent by money transfer. Once the payment was sent, the supposed landlords would disappear with the victim’s money.

    Technology has advanced since those days, but the scam has stayed relatively the same. A Missouri woman was looking for a new home when she found a three bedroom, two-bath house with a little garage on Facebook Marketplace. The rent was listed as $800 a month. We checked the local real estate listings for the area. While there are homes and apartments with 3 bedrooms, you can get for close to that amount. However, they only had one bathroom. 3 bedroom homes with two bathrooms are going for twice that much.

    Anyway, the woman messaged the seller and the seller said that the home could be had if the woman paid first and last month’s rent. Under the direction of the seller, the woman sent the $1600 through Cash App. While the woman was waiting for the keys to be delivered, she drove past what she thought was her new home. Instead, what she saw was a for sale sign in front of the home. She called the realtor listed on the sign, and she was told the home wasn’t for rent.

    The woman attempted to get her money back from Cash App, but her request was denied as the scammer refused to give the money back.

    As we always say, payment apps like Cash App were designed to be used only between friends and family. If someone sends money through Cash App to someone they don’t personally, there’s a good chance they could be scammed.

    Now, we have heard of landlords who accept rent payments through Cash App. That’s fine if you’ve already moved in, established a relationship with your landlord, and are comfortable paying your rent that way. However, it should never be used to send any kind of rental deposit or application fee.

    Before agreeing to any kind of rental arrangement, make sure you’re dealing with the actual landlord. Do a Google search of the address and make sure there are no other listings for that property under different rental agency names or listings with a higher rent price. If the listing you’re looking at has a lower rent price and is being rented by ‘a guy’. There’s a good chance that you’re looking at the scam listing.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on February 23, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Old used car scam still thriving 

    By Greg Collier

    When something has been around a long time, it sometimes gets taken for granted. Many people will assume that others just know about it. However, there are always going to be those who are just learning about whatever it is we might assume is common knowledge. That’s what we’re dealing with in today’s scam.

    A Tennessee man recently lost hundreds of dollars to a used car scam, not at any dealership, but on Facebook Marketplace. The man found a 2001 Toyota Tacoma for $800, which was right in his price range. When the man contacted the seller, he was met with a very old scam.

    The seller claimed to be in the military and was getting ready to ship out. They were supposedly selling the truck because they didn’t want to pay for insurance and storage while deployed. In addition to that, the seller claimed their spouse recently passed away and that was another reason they wanted to sell the truck.

    Being deployed with the military is a tactic that scammers have been using since the earliest days of online marketplaces. Not only does the story garner sympathy from the buyer, but it also lends legitimacy as to why the vehicle is being sold well below market value.

    Another story scammers like to use is the one about the deceased relative. Typically, the scammer will say the vehicle belonged to this relative, and they’re selling it due to grief. This scammer used both stories to fleece their victim.

    To add yet another layer to the scam, the buyer was told that the truck was going to be delivered by eBay and that he needed to pay for the car in gift cards. While eBay does have a platform where you can buy and sell cars, they do not deliver any vehicles. Again, this is a common tactic used by scammers to make the phony purchase seem more legitimate.

    If you’re looking to buy a car online from a private seller, there are a few things to keep in mind. The first is, if the seller is claiming they’re selling the car because they’re leaving the area, be very wary. This is especially so if the seller claims the vehicle’s owner is in the military. Also, be careful when any claims are made that the vehicle’s owner is recently deceased. Lastly, never pay any private seller with gift cards. That is a surefire sign that you’re being scammed.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on February 22, 2023 Permalink | Reply
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    Scammers trick victims into sending money to fake ‘federal locker’ 

    Scammers trick victims into sending money to fake 'federal locker'

    By Greg Collier

    There is a government/police impersonation scam that’s been around for a while. Now, scammers have added a new element to the scam to make the scam appear more legitimate.

    In this scam, scammers call their victims posing as a member of law enforcement. Typically, the scammers will say they’re from a federal law enforcement agency like the FBI, the DEA, US Marshals, or Border Patrol. Other than that, the scam usually follows the same script.

    Scammers call their victims and tell them a car rented in their name was found near the Southern Border near Mexico. The car supposedly had drugs and/or guns in it, and now investigators are looking at the victim as a suspect. The victim is threatened with arrest, but the victim can avoid arrest if they just pay a fine then and there. This is when the scammers ask for payment in some kind of untraceable means like gift cards or cryptocurrency.

    In the more current version of the scam, the scammers try to attract more victims with honey rather than vinegar. The scammers will tell the victim that their identity has been stolen, but the ‘agent’ can help the victim protect their money. Victims are instructed to send their remaining money to a ‘federal locker’ where the government will protect the victim’s money.

    Except, federal lockers used to protect a citizen’s money isn’t a real thing. The only federal lockers that exist are the one’s government employees use to store their coats. What the scammers claim is a federal locker is just the scammers’ bank accounts.

    If there were as many abandoned rental cars filled with drugs on the Southern Border as scammers claim, they would probably be stacked ten-high from California to Texas.

    That’s not even mentioning that if law enforcement thought someone was involved in drug trafficking, they wouldn’t be calling the person to warn them. In these matters, law enforcement would be coming to your door.

    If you get one of these calls, hang up. There’s no law that says you can’t hang up on law enforcement. Then call your local police department and tell them what the caller told you. They’ll be able to advise you on it being a scam. However, please keep in mind that no legitimate law enforcement agency will call you and threaten you with arrest or demand money.

     

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