When it comes to fraud and identity theft, you never can be too prepared. Be aware of the possible fraud around you. Scammers make their living by stealing money from you and those around you, and they might attempt to solicit you via several different means.
First, be skeptical about claiming any kind of vacation, prize, or monetary payout, particularly if you don’t remember entering any such contest. Often scammers will ask for personal information or a financial contribution on your part. These “phishing” scams can show up in the form of letters, e-mails, and phone calls.
You may even receive fake letters from the IRS and Social Security prompting you for your personal information. Letters appearing to be authentic and thieves posing as telemarketers can be very convincing. With false incentive you may even be compelled to call an offshore area code (such as 809), whereupon you could be billed hundreds of dollars for being routed through a foreign phone charge scam. The longer you talk, the more you pay.
Another common scam solicits your help in transferring large sums of money out of a foreign country. As an incentive for your willingness to help, the sender promises to pay you a portion of the money. The sender would then ask for your personal information, as well as your bank account information.
Some people become fraud victims by cashing invalid checks from people they do not know. For example, people have been baited into cashing a check for $5,000 with the belief that they can keep $500 of it. All they have to do is hand over the other $4,500. In reality, that money never existed in the first place. Check forgery, check theft, counterfeit checks, and altered checks are also contributing to the increase in identity theft as well. Third-party bill paying services with “signature on file” and pre-authorized demand drafts compound your risk even more.
Believe it or not, some crooks pose as legitimate companies offering identity theft protection, credit card loss protection, and credit repair opportunities as another means to extract personal account information from you.
Criminals have also been known to insert a card swiping loop and mount a small camera at ATM machines, in the hopes of getting your information. This “skimming” can also occur when you hand over a credit or debit card to pay for merchandise or food. Be cautious when someone takes your card out of view for any length of time. Crooked employees can magnetically swipe your information only to use it or sell it to a third party. Thieves create blank credit cards with the intent to pirate your personal information. That is another reason to destroy any unused credit card applications which come to you in the mail. Once someone obtains your debit card, they don’t necessarily need your pin or signature to make a purchase.
Some other instances of fraud could be disguised as advance fee loan opportunities, government grants, Medicare Rx drug coverage plans, scholarships, credit card offers, buyers clubs, computer equipment and more. This list will only grow, as new schemes evolve to surpass current fraud-fighting tactics.
How to protect yourself? Investigate and validate every source before responding. No one who already has your information should be soliciting you for it again. Request a phone number and address in order to verify the source with organizations like the Better Business Bureau. To find out more about how you can not only be aware, but also protect yourself from fraud and identity theft, visit the following websites:
www.fightidentitytheft.com
www.ftc.gov/idtheft
www.pcua.coop/frauddoctor
