Greg's Corner

Tagged: mail fraud Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

• 

  Geebo 9:00 am on November 16, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: check scam ( 80 ), gift cards ( 102 ), mail fraud, Scams ( 1,407 ), secret shopper ( 15 )   

  Scammers still use old-school means to find victims 

  

  Back in the days before the internet, it was somewhat of a special occasion to receive something in the mail that wasn’t a bill or junk mail. Apparently, it seems that some scammers are still using snail mail in order to find more victims. The thinking here might be that by using the postal mail it gives the scam more of an air of legitimacy than an online scam. However, postal scams can be just as devastating as online scams. Although, the red flags can be just as recognizable.

  A man in Virginia recently received a letter in the mail with a check attached to it. The letter offered a secret shopper position with directions to cash the check before buying Nike gift cards and keeping $450 for himself. Then he would have to take pictures of the front and back of the gift cards to email back to the ‘company’.

  As you’ve probably surmised, the check was fake. The man even said that the check looked like a fake to him. If he were to deposit this check, he would be responsible for the amount to his bank once they found out the check was fake. That’s not even taking into account that companies that employ secret shoppers don’t send out unsolicited mail to random people. Not to mention that any transaction that’s not for a gift card’s intended purpose is almost guaranteed to be a scam.

  Thankfully, the man noticed some other red flags as well. One was that the supposed company that was employing secret shoppers didn’t exist. He found this out after a quick web search. Then he noticed that the name of the company on the check didn’t match that of the company who claimed to have sent it.

  The more concerning part is that the scammers tried following up with the man over text message. They had both his name and his phone number.

  If you receive one of these secret shopper letters, just throw it out. If you receive a text message related to the letter just ignore it. Any response to the scammers will let them know that there is a real person on the other end who could potentially be targeted for more scams.

   

  Leave a ReplyCancel reply
• 

  Geebo 8:04 am on June 24, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: BBB ( 20 ), job scam ( 81 ), mail fraud, repackaging ( 22 ), reshipping ( 22 ), Scams ( 1,407 )   

  Warnings issued about illegal job scam 

  

  With so many Americans still looking for employment during this time of record job losses, the Better Business Bureau has issued a warning about an employment scam that could land the victim in hot water. We’re, of course, referring to the reshipping or repackaging scam.

  The online job listing may say that the position is called ‘shipping coordinator’, ‘warehouse redistribution coordinator’, or something similar. In some cases, the scammers even pose as major retailers like Amazon or Walmart. The scammers will tell you that you can work at home and all you have to do is receive packages in the mail, inspect the contents for damages before shipping them to a different address.

  The problem with this is that the goods are usually purchased with stolen credit card information and you’re helping the scammers transfer stolen goods across the country. People who have been unknowingly conned into taking part in the scam have even faced jail time. For example, if you were instructed to lie on US Customs Service forms for packages leaving the country, you could be charged with fraud.

  If you do escape the long arm of the law, you could still find yourself the victim of identity theft or worse. Since the scammers are posing as legitimate employers, they will ask you for personal information including bank account information for phony direct deposits. Or they could disguise paying you by sending you a falsified check. This is when the scammers will say the check is for more than they meant to send you and will ask you to send the difference back. Of course, after you deposit the check and send the difference back to the scammers your bank will discover the check is a fake and you’ll be responsible for the amount of the check to your bank. So in the end, you’ll actually be deeper in debt than when you started the ‘job’.

  If you think you may be a victim in a reshipping scam there are steps you can take. If you’ve already received items don’t mail them. Instead, contact the USPS Postal Inspectors at 1-877-876-2455.

   
• 

  Geebo 8:10 am on March 25, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: mail fraud, Scams ( 1,407 ), social security ( 29 )   

  Social Security Office warns of new scam 

  

  It’s difficult to find a scam these days that isn’t somehow related to today’s global crisis. Many of these scams have been targeting either the elderly or the underprivileged. The scam we’re discussing today does both.

  The Social Security Office of the Inspector General is warning recipients of a new scam. Due to the current pandemic, many local Social Security offices have been temporarily closed. Social Security itself is still open and functioning. However, scammers have been trying to take advantage of the possible confusion. The scammers have been sending official-looking letters in the mail claiming that Social Security benefits will be terminated or suspended unless they call a phone number contained in the letter. It’s during this call where the scammers will either try to get your personal information or try to get you to make some form of payment. Scammers will try to get victims to pay using such untraceable methods like gift cards, cryptocurrency like Bitcoin, or even mailing cash.

  While using pandemic fears as a catalyst is new, this is a twist on a scam we’ve seen used before. Scammers are constantly looking for Social Security recipients to intimidate into thinking their benefits are about to be cut off. In the past, they’ve told victims that their benefits will be suspended because the victim’s Social Security number was used during a crime.

  [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrHFNdjcp2s%5D

  According to the Social Security Office, they will not suspend or decrease Social Security benefits during the current crisis. Also please keep in mind that Social Security will never threaten you with arrest or ask you for a payment in any of the aforementioned ways. If you receive any kind of notice threatening suspension of benefits, it’s more than likely a scam. If someone were to receive one of these notices, you’re asked to report it to Social Security at their website.