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  Geebo 8:25 am on April 10, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: check scam ( 79 ), lottery scam, Scams ( 1,386 ), social media ( 81 ), virtual kidnapping ( 45 )   

  Kidnapping scams, among others, continue 

  

  For the past few weeks, we’ve been discussing scams that have been related to the coronavirus pandemic whether it’s directly or indirectly. While fears surrounding the pandemic have been a boon to many con artists, some are still running the same old scams without using coronavirus as a tool in their arsenal.

  In Denver, the police have been receiving complaints about kidnapping scams taking place. This is when a scammer will call a victim and tell them that they’ve kidnapped a loved one. The scammers will then demand a ransom either through wire transfer, gift cards or other hard to trace payment options. The trick to this scam is that nobody has been actually kidnapped and the scammers are hoping the fear generated in the situation will cause the victim to pay the phony ransom. Often, these scammers are able to find the names of their pretend victims through social media making the threatening call more convincing. If you ever receive one of these phone calls, always get someone you trust to call the suspected victim while you keep the virtual kidnappers on the phone. In any case, you should always contact the police if you find yourself in the midst of this scam.

  [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJH3CgOm944%5D

  Two Chicago men were arrested in Boise, Idaho accused of a social media scam that cost victims thousands of dollars. The two men would allegedly take to social media and post the message “Who ready to get paid today? Text CASH NOW to [phone number redacted.] It’s legit… tell them I referred you.” Victims were said to be persuaded to hand over their debit card information including their PIN. Instead of getting paid, the two men would deposit phony checks into the victims’ accounts then withdraw the money before the bank would realize the checks were fake.

  In Kentucky, scammers are posing as the state Lottery Commission and telling victims that they have won large prizes. The scammers will then either ask for ‘taxes’ on the prize or they’ll ask for bank information to send the phony prize. In either case, the victims end up losing money before it’s all over/. Keep in mind that when you purchase a lottery ticket you never give your contact information to the point of purchase so the Lottery Commission has no way of contacting you.

  While these scams may bot be happening in your area now, it could only be a matter of time before they are.

   

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  Geebo 9:00 am on December 10, 2019 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: bank scam ( 72 ), gift cards ( 102 ), lottery scam, Scams ( 1,386 )   

  You can’t win a sweepstakes you never entered 

  

  It’s time again for more scams that are happening around the country.

  In Iowa, authorities are warning residents who receive a letter from the “North America Consumer Promotion Draw.” The letter states that you’ve won some kind of sweepstakes prize and that you should call one of their agents so you can claim your prize. Of course, in order to claim your winnings, you have to pay a $1,000 processing and insurance fee. Instead of claiming any prizes, you’ll just be out of a grand. By and large, random people don’t get entered into giveaways that they haven’t entered themselves, and legitimate sweepstakes won’t ask you to pay a fee to claim your prize.

  In Wisconsin, a man fell victim to the bank texting scam. The man received a text from a scammer posing as his bank stating that there was fraudulent activity on his account. When the man texted back that those transactions weren’t him he received an automated phone call asking for his account’s PIN. Once he provided his PIN an actual fraudulent charge was made to his debit card for $500. If you receive any kind of notification stating that there’s a problem with your bank account, contact your bank directly. Don’t use the number that the text number may have provided and never give your PIN unless you’re absolutely sure you’re talking to your bank.

  Lastly, a Sheriff’s Office in Kentucky is warning local businesses about a gift card scam targeting their employees. A number of people have received emails posing as their bosses asking the employees to go out and buy gift cards. Once the gift cards were purchased the employees were instructed to send pictures of the gift card PINs through text message. If you receive an email like this, always verify with the person who is supposedly sending the email. If in doubt, call the person who sent the request to make sure you’re not falling victim to a scam.

  Please keep in mind that any number of these scams could be coming to your area at any time.

   
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  Geebo 9:00 am on November 12, 2019 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: elderly ( 12 ), Jamaica, lottery scam, Scams ( 1,386 )   

  Victim fights back in lottery scam 

  

  A 90-year-old woman from a small town in North Dakota was taken for $400,000 in a foreign lottery scam. A scammer called the woman to tell her that she had won millions of dollars in a lottery. The catch was that she would have to pay advance fees in order to claim the winnings. This woman ended up paying $400,000 to scammers by sending them checks, cashing out a life insurance policy, and even borrowing money from family members. The woman’s children were finally able to discover what was happening and explained to the woman what was really going on.

  The victim, in this case, didn’t take the losses lying down and helped launch a federal investigation into this particular scam. Federal investigators have been able to apprehend 31 suspects allegedly involved in the scam. Most of the suspects were captured in the United States but a number of them were extradited from Jamaica. It’s believed this scam ring was able to bilk its elderly victims out of $6 million. While federal prosecutors have pledged to get the woman’s money back, so far she’s only been able to collect $287 out of the $400,000 she lost.

  [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaqVL9yJVzM%5D

  With most scams, if something sounds too good to be true it probably is. Even if you play your state lottery the lottery commission isn’t going to call you by phone. In that case, you need to contact them to claim any winnings if there over a certain amount. While you may be in a desperate situation where the money would be a welcome relief, take a moment to think about wahts’ going on. Why would someone call you to give you money for a lottery that you didn’t even enter? There are no mystery lotteries giving out money to random winners. While it may sound like a gift from above, it’s actually a deal with the devil.