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  • Geebo 8:01 am on April 14, 2023 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , deceased, , tax letter, tax processing center   

    Scam targets the recently deceased 

    Scam targets the recently deceased

    By Greg Collier

    Losing a loved one is an emotional and difficult time for any family. Along with the grieving process, there are practical matters that need to be addressed, including the deceased person’s financial affairs. One common concern is how to handle any debts that the deceased may have had. If you’re a family member or executor of the estate, it’s important to understand your obligations and options when it comes to paying off these debts. And if that wasn’t difficult enough, now it seems you might have to be on the lookout for scammers as well.

    A Sheriff’s Office in Kansas recently sent a warning to residents about a scam that is targeting families of the recently deceased. Family members of those who have passed have been receiving letters in the mail which claim to be from a ‘Tax Processing Center’. The letter also claims to be from the state of Kansas and contains a header that reads, “Final Demand for Payment for Nonpayment of Taxes to the State of Kansas” along with the deceased’s name. The family is also threatened with the seizure of property if the debt isn’t paid. The closing of the letter contains a phone number where the debt can be supposedly paid off, but the phone number goes to a call center run by scammers.

    So, if someone were to fall for the letter, we have no doubt that the scammers would happily steal the money from a grieving family. This is yet another example of how low scammers are willing to stoop. We can just imagine scammers perusing local obituaries before sending the scam letters.

    If you find yourself in a situation where you receive a letter like this, first off, you have our condolences. But before calling the phone number in the letter, research the letter first. Google the phone number to see if it comes up with scam complaints. If you’re still unsure, call your state’s Department of Revenue or whatever your state’s equivalent is to make sure the letter is a fake.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on May 12, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: deceased, , , , , ,   

    Scam Round Up: Homeless victim loses savings in scam and more 

    By Greg Collier

    In this week’s round up, we have an update on a recent scam, a reminder of a grim scam, and a heartbreaking story on how heartless scammers are.

    ***

    You may remember a story from our last Scam Round Up where teachers in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area were being targeted in a jury duty scam. More recently, this scam moved westward and is now targeting teachers from the Cleveland, Ohio area, with at least one teacher falling victim to the scam.

    This is where scammers pose as local police and tell their victims they missed jury duty and a warrant is about to be issued for their arrest. However, a payment over the phone will supposedly resolve the matter.

    Much like in the Pittsburgh scam, scammers are calling schools in the Cleveland area asking for specific teachers and threatening them with arrest. One teacher is said to have lost $2000 to these scammers.

    Again, when it comes to jury duty, all communication is done through postal mail and not over the phone.

    ***

    In Upstate New York, police there are warning residents about a scam affecting the families of the recently deceased. Scammers are calling these families posing as an actuarial company claiming there’s been a data breach of the deceased’s information. The families are then asked for personal identifying information of the deceased.

    In this instance, scammers are likely trying to commit identity theft. They want to do things like open credit cards or take out loans in the deceased’s name before the credit companies update their record.

    If you were ever to receive a phone call like this, the best thing to do is to ask for them to send a request in writing. While not a guarantee, this does go a long way on discouraging these kinds of scammers.

    ***

    If that story wasn’t disturbing enough, a homeless woman from Florida was recently taken for over $1000 in a rental scam. After saving up enough money for her and her newborn baby to rent a home, she responded to an online real estate ad. She was texted by the supposed landlord, who asked her to pay a $75 application fee over Zelle. She was told she couldn’t see the property for a few days since it was currently occupied. Then she was asked by the supposed landlord to send $1049 for the first month’s rent. Fearing she might not get the home, she sent the money.

    Anytime a prospective landlord can’t show the property for whatever reason, there’s a good chance they’re not really the landlord.

    ***

    We hope that our readers never have to deal with scammers like this. But if you do, we hope we’ve prepared you enough to detect them.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on February 23, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , deceased, , , violent crime   

    Crime victim’s family taken advantage of by scammers 

    Crime victim's family taken advantage of by scammers

    By Greg Collier

    Today, we’re going to discuss a scam that doesn’t happen to everyone. We wish it didn’t have to happen to anyone. However, it once again shows just how low scammers will sink to try to take advantage of someone during a time of crisis.

    The death of a loved one is never easy. Losing a loved one to violent crime is even more difficult, to say the least. Now imagine having that happen to you, and then a con artist tries to use your loved one in one of their scams.

    That’s what happened to a woman living in Atlanta who recently lost her adult son to violent crime. As she was grieving for her son, she received a phone call from someone claiming to be with Atlanta Victim Assistance. The caller told the woman that she would receive $6500 from the organization to help pay for her son’s funeral. The caller asked her for her son’s personal information, such as his Social Security number. The grieving mother realized she may have spoken to a scammer when she spoke with the actual Atlanta Victim Assistance office. They told her that they only request that information after a family applies for funds.

    So why would someone try to get the personal information of a man who is deceased? As horrible as it is to say, the recently deceased can be prime targets for identity theft. An identity thief can potentially use that person’s identity for months before credit agencies and the like are notified of the victim’s passing. This is not unlike how identity thieves will steal the identities of minors and use their identity for years before any fraudulent activity is discovered.

    Security experts recommend that you notify the IRS, the Social Security Administration, and the major credit reporting agencies of your loved one’s passing to avoid having their identity stolen. It’s also recommended to try to limit the amount of personal information used in an obituary, as these often contains enough information for identity thieves to start their scheming.

    It’s a shame that this is what the world has come to, but hopefully, you’re now somewhat prepared if an unfortunate event like this happens to someone you know.

     

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