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  Geebo 8:00 am on June 8, 2023 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: car wrapping, check scam ( 76 ), fake check ( 43 ), funeral ( 12 ), funeral home scam ( 4 ), impersonation scam ( 113 ), Scams ( 1,224 ), social security ( 27 ), SSA ( 3 )   

  Scam Round Up: Money recovered in Social Security scam and more 

  

  By Greg Collier

  We’re starting off with a pretty grim scam today. We’ve posted about it before, but it seems to be becoming more common, so we thought we’d remind our readers about it. We’re talking about the funeral home scam. Scammers have been going through obituaries and targeting the families of the recently deceased. As a family is in the process of grieving, scammers will call them, posing as whatever funeral home the family is using. The scammers will claim the family needs to make an additional payment before their loved one could be interred.

  Scammers are constantly looking for victims who may be emotionally vulnerable, and what’s more emotional than the passing of a loved one. If you receive a phone call like this, please keep in mind that in most instances, financial arrangements are always handled at the funeral home itself. Hang up on the call, and call the funeral home directly to verify if there are any issues.

  In our second scam story, the summer months can bring about their own scams. One of those is the car wrapping scam. This is when scammers will offer to pay you for wrapping your car with advertisements. In the majority of cases, this is just an avenue for scammers to send their victims a fake check. The victim will be sent a check and told to deposit in their bank account. Then they’re told to use that money to pay the car wrap vendor through apps like Venmo or Cash App before the victim’s bank discovers the check is fraudulent. This leaves the victim on the hook to their bank for the full amount of the check and any associated fees.

  Lastly, a woman from Louisiana was one of the lucky ones recently as authorities were able to recover over $100,000 from a Social Security scam. The woman received a call from who she thought was the Social Security Administration. The news report didn’t say what the scammers were asking payment for, but typically in this scam, the scammers threaten the victim by claiming the victim’s benefits will be cut off if they don’t make the payment.

  The victim wired $146,000 to the scammers’ bank account, but police were able to work with the bank to recover $122,000 of the woman’s money. However, this is the exception and not the rule. In many scams that involve banks, the banks see the transactions as legitimate since they were made by the customer, even if it was done under duress.

  If you receive a call from the SSA, the odds are that caller is a scammer. Hang up the phone, then call the SSA directly at 1-800-772-1213 and let them know what the caller said. If there really is an issue, the SSA will contact you by mail first.

   

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  Geebo 8:00 am on October 13, 2022 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: car wrapping, check scam ( 76 ), debt collectors ( 9 ), fake check ( 43 ), job scam ( 71 ), law firm, real estate ( 117 ), Scams ( 1,224 )   

  Scam Round Up: Phony Law Firm Scam and more 

  

  By Greg Collier

  This week, in the Scam Round Up, we’ll be reminding our readers of an old scam, a new twist on a familiar scam, and a new and potentially terrifying scam.

  ***

  Lots of scams are designed to swindle people who are looking to make a supplemental income. One of those scams is the car wrap scam. This is where scammers promise to pay you for putting advertising decals on your car and just driving around town. While there are legitimate opportunities to do this, they aren’t as frequent as the scammers would have you believe. They’ll also go to great lengths to try to convince you that they’re the legitimate offer.

  For example, an Arkansas man received what appeared to be a legitimate car wrap offer in the mail. The offer appeared professional in nature, but the closer the man looked, the more he realized it was a scam.

  The offer included a check for $3700. $100 of it was for gas, $600 was supposed to be the man’s payment, and the remaining $3000 was supposed to go to the company that would wrap his car. Except, he was supposed to deposit the check and then pay the company through Venmo or Cash App.

  Thankfully, the man waited before sending any of the money. He waited for his bank to let him know whether the check was legitimate or not, and it turned out to be fraudulent. Just by waiting, he saved himself from being thousands of dollars in debt to his bank.

  ***

  Speaking of fake check scams, one seems to be hitting the real estate market hard. Scammers are sending fraudulent cashier’s checks to realtors and title companies, posing as someone who is interested in buying a house. Once the check is deposited, the scammers claim they’ve changed their mind about the home and want their money back. Now, most knowledgeable realtors won’t move forward with any transaction until the check clears.

  While most realtors wouldn’t fall for this scam, it’s still tying up properties while realtors wait to see if the check is real. Taking a property off the market and putting it back on can not only hurt the home’s value, but it also keeps it out of the hands of people needing to find a home.

  ***

  Lastly, we have a story about a man who received a cal from a law firm trying to collect a debt. The law firm said that he had defaulted on a loan from 2016. The caller said they needed to send someone to his home to receive his signature. The scammers even knew a lot of information about their target, including his Social Security number, and the names of his family members.

  They said he owed $9000 but would be willing to take an immediate payment of $4000. The man was taken aback at first, but once he gathered his composure, he realized this was a scam. After the man hung up on the scammers, the scammers called the man’s adult son to try to intimidate the man further.

  If you receive a call from someone trying to collect a debt, ask them to mail you a debt verification letter that will detail where the debt supposedly came from. If they know way too much information about you than they should, consider putting fraud alerts on all your financial accounts.

   
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  Geebo 8:00 am on June 13, 2022 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: bitcoin atm ( 19 ), car wrapping, fake check ( 43 ), job scam ( 71 ), Microsoft ( 18 ), prescription drugs ( 3 ), ransomware ( 11 ), Scams ( 1,224 ), tech support scam ( 43 )   

  Scam Round Up: Door to door prescription scam and more 

  

  By Greg Collier

  Today, we’re bringing you three more scams happening around the country that could easily show up in your area.

  ***

  With the weather being warmer, even with rising gas prices, more people are taking to the roads. This has allegedly led to a resurgence of the car warp scam. This is when scammers promise their victims they can make money by wrapping their car in advertisements. While there are legitimate offers for this, the majority of them online are scams. The car wrapping scam is just another avenue for the fake check scam. The scammers send victims a fake check they’re supposed top deposit into their bank account and then use the remainder of the check to pay an ad agency who provides the wrap. The supposed ad agency is part of the scam as well. The victim almost always ends up being held responsible for the full amount of the check to their bank.

  ***

  Unfortunately, another elderly victim was recently targeted in yet another computer virus scam. The Massachusetts woman was using her computer when a message said that her device had been compromised. The message contained a phone number that claimed to be from Microsoft and that she would need to call it to have her computer fixed. This number did not go to Microsoft, but instead went to what is essentially a call center for scammers. They instructed her to take $30,000 out of her bank account and deposit it into a Bitcoin ATM. Luckily, police were able to intervene, and the woman got her money back. Keep in mind with this scam that companies like Microsoft don’t usually take phone calls, and no computer repair is worth $30,000.

  ***

  Lastly, we have a story out of Oklahoma City, where authorities are warning about a particularly frightening scam. Law enforcement there are saying that people there are posing as pharmacy employees and going door to door asking residents for expired medication. These are not pharmacy employees, and they are looking for narcotics. If someone comes to your door asking for expired prescriptions, you may want to contact your local police. If you do have expired prescriptions, especially if they’re opioids, you can take them to many pharmacies which do have drug disposal programs. It is also recommended that you can dispose of them in the trash if you mix them with something unpleasant like used cat litter or coffee grounds.

  ***

  Hopefully, these scams won’t come to your area, but if they do, you’re now better prepared for them.

   
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  Geebo 8:00 am on May 27, 2022 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: car wrapping, fake check ( 43 ), Green Dot, jury duty scam ( 26 ), online marketplace ( 10 ), Scams ( 1,224 ), Zelle ( 62 )   

  Scam Round Up: Zelle in online marketplaces and more 

  

  By Greg Collier

  As most of us get ready for a three-day weekend, let’s take a look at three scams that we all probably should review.

  ***

  In Pennsylvania Dutch Country around Lancaster, authorities are warning residents that the car wrap scam has resurfaced in their area. This is when scammers promise their victims they can make money by wrapping their car in advertisements. In this particular instance, the scammers are posing as Hershey Chocolate, which is headquartered in the area. However, this scam is a variation of the fake check scam. The scammers will send you a fraudulent check they want you to deposit in your bank account before using that money to pay an ad agency who provides the wrap. Except, there is no ad agency. They’re just another part of the scam. So by the time your bank realizes the check you deposited is fake, the scammers will be long gone, and you’ll be on the hook to your bank for the amount of the check and any subsequent fees. No legitimate employer will ever ask you to deposit money into your bank account and then have you use it for business expenses.

  ***

  In the Cincinnati area, the jury duty scam is being reported on again. Although, this could literally be from anywhere in the United States since it’s such a common scam. Once again, this is the scam where scammers pose as law enforcement or the court system and try to convince their victims over the phone that they missed jury duty. To make themselves seem legitimate, the scammers know the victim’s address and the last four digits of their Social Security number. This information was more than likely obtained in a data breach. The scammers then tell their victim that in order to avoid arrest, they can pay a fine over the phone. In the Cincinnati story, the scammers are asking for their payment specifically in prepaid debit cards known as the Green Dot card. We’re surprised that the jury duty scammers are still using Green Dot cards when most other scammers have moved on to Zelle.

  ***

  And speaking of Zelle, the money transfer app is being used in yet another scam. This time, the scammers are targeting sellers on online marketplaces. A man in Denver was trying to sell a mattress online when he got an immediate response from a supposed buyer. The buyer said that someone else would be picking up the mattress. The buyer also requested to be able to pay through Zelle, and the seller was sent an email from ‘ZelleOfficialPay@gmail.com’. The seller realized that Zelle wouldn’t be using a Gmail address. So, it sounds like that the scammers were posing as Zelle to send some kind of fraudulent payment to the seller. Remember, Zelle should only be used between friends and family. Any online transaction that requests Zelle for any reason is a good indication it could be a scam.

  ***

  Thank you for reading, and we hope you have a safe Memorial Day weekend.

   
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  Geebo 8:00 am on October 11, 2021 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: car wrapping, check scam ( 76 ), fake check ( 43 ), job scam ( 71 ), Scams ( 1,224 ), Zipcar   

  Rental car company’s name used in scam 

  

  By Greg Collier

  Many of you might not have heard of Zipcar. They’re kind of like an Uber for rental cars. Instead of the cars being owned by a rental company, they’re owned by private citizens looking to make a little money by renting their car out through Zipcar. Zipcar is also owned by car rental giant AVIS. So, at least on the surface, they seem like a mostly reliable company. Of course, if you’re a reliable company, someone will use your name to try to scam people. We’ve seen such scams with companies like Apple, Microsoft, and Uber, so I guess it’s Zipcar’s turn now. In the interest of transparency, this is not an endorsement of Zipcar, and Zipcar had nothing to do with the actual scam.

  A man from Norfolk, Virginia, received a random text message that appeared to come from Zipcar. The text said the man could make hundreds of dollars just for driving his car around with a Zipcar decal on it. The man caught on to the scam quick when he clicked on the link in the text, and it went nowhere. Never click on those links, by the way. The report we’ve read doesn’t go into details, but the man received an email from a fake Zipcar representative.

  The man wanted to see how far the scam would go, so he responded claiming he was interested in the promotion. Not too long after that, he received a ‘welcome package’ in the mail. The package contained a Zipcar sticker, a letter, and a cashier’s check for $2,980. Of course, the check was a fake and the man did not deposit it.

  This is very similar to the car wrapping scam, where victims will be asked to wrap their whole car in some kind of advertisement. The victim will be sent the usual fake check and will be asked to deposit the check in their bank account. The victim will then be asked to take some of the money as their payment and used the rest to either buy ‘supplies’ from a vendor working with the scammer, or the victim will be asked to send the money to some third party as part of ‘business expenses’. When the victim’s bank finds out the check is fraudulent, it’s the victim that’s held responsible for that money.

  According to the Better Business Bureau, the Zipcar scam has been finding victims all over the country and fleecing them of thousands of dollars. As with most scams, you should ignore any unsolicited texts promising you money. Not only that, but real companies, especially as one as large as AVIS, will never ask you to deposit company funds in your own checking account. If any employer does, you can almost guarantee that the check is a fake.

   
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  Geebo 9:00 am on January 14, 2021 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: car wrapping, check scam ( 76 ), fake check ( 43 ), job scam ( 71 ), Scams ( 1,224 )   

  Car wrapping disguises old scam 

  

  Wrapping your car in advertisements is similar to the secret shopper scam. While there are legitimate opportunities to make some money by having your car wrapped in advertising, the scammers seem to vastly outnumber the legitimate vendors. The car wrap scammers are actually just using this ploy to find people to use in one of the most common scams of our time.

  The car wrap scam is just an extension of the fake check scam. Scammers will either post an online ad looking for people to have their car wrapped, or they’ll solicit people in the mail. Either way, victims are sent a check and are told to deposit the check in their banking account, so they can pay to have their car wrapped and take some money as payment. Then the victims will be instructed to send any money leftover to the scammers.

  The checks are fake, and if you deposit the check and then spend it, you’ll be responsible for the check’s amount to your bank plus any additional fees. When a bank receives a check as a deposit they’re operating under the assumption that the check is legitimate and the funds should be immediately available. This is especially true if the phony check resembles a legitimate cashier’s check.

  Recently, this scam has started to appear again in different parts of the country. We’ve seen reports from such diverse places as Pittsburgh to rural Alabama. This is a good indicator that the scam could show up in your area sometime soon.

  No legitimate employer will ever ask you to donate a check into your personal bank account that’s not your paycheck. If one does, it’s almost certain to be a scam. A scam that could very well leave you worse off than you might have already been.

   
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  Geebo 9:00 am on November 6, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: car wrapping, check scam ( 76 ), job scam ( 71 ), Scams ( 1,224 )   

  Don’t get wrapped up in this job scam 

  

  If you’ve ever spotted a car that was covered in advertising that wasn’t on a racetrack you’ve witnessed what’s known as car wrapping. Some companies will pay people just to drive around with their branding on your vehicle. However, much like the secret shopper scams, there are probably more scam offers for this opportunity than legitimate ones. Recent reports indicate that there is a resurgence in car wrapping scams.

  The car wrapping scam is just another variation of the fake check scam. The scammers will send you a check for more than you’re supposed to be paid. They’ll then instruct you to deposit the check in your bank account and return the overage to them. Once your bank finds out the check is fraudulent after you deposit it, you’d be responsible for the full amount of the check plus whatever overage fees the bank would charge you.

  The car wrapping scam seems to target mostly young people who are looking to make some extra money. A teen in Knoxville, Tennessee was recently sent an unsolicited letter in the mail with the check already enclosed claiming an upfront payment of $700. The check was for $3700.

  A fast-food worker in Charlotte, North Carolina went online to find a way to make extra money and found an ad for a car wrapping gig. She was offered $400 but the check she received was for $3600. She went ahead and deposited the check and sent the remainder back to the scammers.

  Please keep in mind that no legitimate employer will ask you to deposit a check and have you send them money back. If a real company made a mistake like this, they would just cut you a new check.

  Also, real advertisers that hire people for car wrapping opportunities actually have a stringent screening process. They’ll also have detailed information about the opportunity on their website including their physical location.

   
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  Geebo 8:00 am on May 19, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: car wrapping, employment ( 33 ), job scam ( 71 ), job search ( 8 ), jobs ( 9 ), Scams ( 1,224 ), unemployment scam ( 30 )   

  Scams targeting those trying to return to work 

  

  With many states trying to return to normal, many people are looking to gain employment after record numbers of workers have been unemployed. Never ones to miss out on an opportunity to seize ill-gotten gains from tragedy, scammers and con artists have been increasing their scams that target job seekers.

  One particularly disturbing scam is targeting the unemployed in at least one state. In Washington, scammers are using stolen identities to try to collect unemployment benefits. This takes much needed financial relief out of the hands of the people that need them and put them potentially into the hands of overseas scammers. It is recommended to check with your state’s unemployment office to make sure your payments are being sent to the correct destination. In some states, you can even sign up for an account through the state without even needing unemployment benefits.

  Of course, scammers have also been trying to fool job seekers with legitimate-looking positions. One man looking for employment posted his resume to a number of job boards like Indeed and Monster hoping to find a position that would take advantage of the years of his experience. Instead, he received a job offer that just tried to take advantage of him. He received a job offer from a company that he had not even applied to. Everything about the position looked legitimate so he accepted the position. However, the ‘company’ sent the man his payment by a check that was over the amount he was supposed to be paid. They told him to deposit the check and return the difference to them. Thankfully, the man was familiar with the phony check scheme and did not deposit the check. But he was devastated that this was not a legitimate job.

  Lastly, old employment scams are finding new victims after so many have been unemployed for the past few months. One of those scams is the car wrap scam. In it, the scammer will promise you so much money a week to display advertising on your car. More often than not, these offers are scams. One woman in California accepted one of these positions and once again, she was sent a check that was more than she was supposed to receive. She was also aware of the phony check scam and did not deposit the check.

  While these may be lean times, always do your due diligence when looking for a job. If you are offered a position, always research the company that’s offering you the job. Sometimes, something as simple as checking their address on Google Maps can reveal their true intentions.

  Unemployment scam not just targeting the unemployed | Greg's Corner is discussing. Toggle Comments

   
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  Geebo 9:00 am on December 27, 2019 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: car wrapping, pickpockets, San Francisco ( 8 ), Scams ( 1,224 ), virtual kidnapping ( 42 )   

  Now you see your jewelry, now you don’t 

  

  If you’re planning on traveling this holiday season you may want to avoid San Francisco, or at least leave the jewelry at home. San Francisco police are warning visitors about a street-level scam that has seen its victims lose a lot of personal items. Con artists are said to be approaching victims by performing sleight of hand tricks. These deft deceivers then switch out your jewelry with fakes before absconding with the real thing. If you think that this only happens in movies, think again. You may also want to rethink the notion that it can’t happen to you.

  [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAXEM8qhfMU%5D

  The virtual kidnapping scam is making the rounds again, this time in the Sedona area of Arizona. In case you’re not familiar with this scam it can be particularly disturbing to the victim. In it, the scammer will call their victim and claim that they’ve kidnapped one of their loved ones. Sometimes they’ll even have other people act as the alleged kidnapping victim. In reality, there has been no kidnapping and the scammers are trying to get the victim into an emotional state where they’ll pay a ransom without question. If you receive a call like this, it is recommended that you try to contact the person who the scammers claim is being kidnapped.

  Lastly, in Virginia, a man was targeted in a car wrapping scam. This is yet another variation of the phony check scam. The man was contacted by someone claiming to represent an energy drink company and they wanted to pay him for wrapping his car in advertisements. They sent him a check for $3,000 which he was supposed to deposit in his bank account, keep $500 and use the rest to buy the wrapping for his car. Thankfully, the man felt like something was wrong and had his bank investigate the check before depositing it. The check was a fake and if the man had deposited it and spent the money he would have had to pay the bank the difference back.

  Please keep in mind that while these scams may not be happening in your area right now, they could be showing up there soon.

   
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  Geebo 8:00 am on March 26, 2019 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: car wrapping, check scam ( 76 ), DNA scam ( 5 ), job scam ( 71 ), Scams ( 1,224 ), taxes ( 8 )   

  Wrapped car jobs, more from the IRS, and DNA scams 

  

  What a wrapped car may look like.

  We have three scams happening across the country for you again. As we’ve stated before, if the scams are happening in one community, they could be happening in yours.

  If you think you’re not going to get scammed by using your local newspaper’s classified section you’d be wrong. While not as prevalent on some of our competitor’s sites, scams do happen on print classifieds as well. For example, in Kalamazoo, Michigan, the BBB is reporting that a number of people have submitted complaints about an ad promising $300-$400 per week by driving your car around with advertisements on it. It’s called car wrapping and is usually as much as a legitimate job as a secret shopper. And the goal of the car wrapping scam is the same as the secret shopper. People who applied for the job were told to cash a check they were sent, keep some of it as your payment, and send the remainder to someone else. The check turns out to be phony but if you cashed the check your bank will make you foot the full amount of the check. Remember, there’s no such thing as easy money.

  [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVZ-ipPX7ao%5D

  With the annual income tax deadline looming, the IRS has released their Dirty Dozen of IRS scams. Some of these scams we’ve covered before such as don’t take calls from someone claiming to be the IRS as they ever rarely call someone over tax issues. One of the scams that we’ve not mentioned before is to be wary of shady tax return preparers. While most tax professionals would never try to rip off a client, there are some shifty ones who would use your tax return as a way to steal your identity. They may also promise you an unusually high return. The IRS also warns you not to avoid paying taxes by claiming that income tax is somehow illegal or unconstitutional. No one has ever proven that and you’ll end up owing the government a lot more money than you did before.

  Previously we’ve posted about a scam where a scammer poses as your county and threatens to send you to jail for skipping jury duty. The scammers will try to make you pay a fine over the phone which most county governments never do. Now, the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office in Nevada is warning about a twist on that scam. In this new scam, the perpetrators claim to be local police and that your DNA has been found at a crime scene. They’ll then try to get you to make a payment through Bitcoin, wire transfer, or gift cards. Again, if you’re DNA was found at a crime scene, police would come to your location and not make a phone call. That’s not to mention that county governments would not ask for payment outside of check, cash or credit/debit card.