Fake Check Scams.  Someone sends you a check or money order.  They ask you to deposit it to your account and wire transfer them the money --minus a bonus for you to keep for helping out.   Does this sound too good to be true?    Yes.   The check or money order you receive will be counterfeit and you'll be out the money.   How do these check scams work?   There are several variations:

• You're overpaid for an item you sold on the internet and asked to wire-transfer back the extra dollars.
• You receive a check and notification that you've won a foreign lottery or sweepstakes.    You're told to deposit the check, representing a portion of your winnings, and wire-transfer $2,000 or $5,000 back to cover the taxes so you can collect the rest of your winnings.
• A work-at-home offer promises that, in return for depositing a money order or check to your bank account, you can keep a percentage of the money after wire-transferring the rest.
• Someone in a chat room asks you a favor:   Just cash the check and wire-transfer them the money.

The results are the same -- the check or money order you receive for deposit will be counterfeit.  How can you protect yourself from this type of scam?  There is no legitimate reason for someone who is giving you money to ask you to wire money back -- that's a clear sign it's a scam.  To learn more about common consumer scams, visit the following websites:

    www.fakechecks.org

    www.usps.com/postalinspectors

    www.lookstoogoodtobetrue.com

    www.ftc.gov

    www.ic3.gov

Credit and Charge Card Fraud.    The Federal Trade Commission offers these simple tips to help protect yourself from credit and charge card fraud.

    Do:

• Sign your cards as soon as they arrive.
• Carry your cards separately from your wallet, in a zippered compartment, a business card holder, or another small pouch.
• Keep a record of your account numbers, their expiration dates, and the phone number and address of each company in a secure place.
• Keep an eye on your card during the transaction, and get it back as quickly as possible.
• Void incorrect receipts.
• Destroy carbons.
• save receipts to compare with billing statements.
• Open bills promptly and reconcile accounts monthly, just as you would your checking account.
• Report any questionable charges promptly and in writing to the card issuer.
• Notify card companies in advance ofa change in address.

    Don't:

• Lend your card(s) to anyone.
• Leave cards or receipts lying around.
• Sign a blank receipt.   When you sign a receipt, draw a line through any blank spaces above the total.
• Write your account number on a postcard or the outside of an envelope.
• Give out your account number over the phone unless you're making the call to a company you know is reputable.   If you have questions about a company, check it out with the District Attorney's Consumer Advisory or the Better Business Bureau.

Visit the Federal Trade Commission website at www.ftc.gov for more information.  

Additional Resources:

www.aarp.org/money/wise_consumer/scams

www.fraud.org/tips/internet/boguscredit.htm

Consumers can have their names removed from the specialized marketing lists credit bureaus give to credit card companies by calling 1-888-5OPT-OUT or visit www.optoutprescreen.com

Strike Five Mega Lotto Scam.   The California Attorney General's Office reports this scam is the latest twist on scams also known as the Canadian Sweepstakes and Nigerian Check Scams.  Consumers receive a check that looks real and is instructed to cash the check.   Consumers are asked to send a process fee to cover handling fees or to pay a partial refund.  The check is bogus and the consumer is held responsible for cashing a fictitious check with their bank.

Car Buyer's Bill of Rights.    An important new law took effect July 1, 2006 that impacts new and used vehicle purchases.    Visit the Department of Consumer Affairs website at www.dca.ca.gov to review the Bill of Rights.

Internet Auctions.   According to the Federal Trade Commission there are a growing number of complaints filed about late shipments, no shipments and  fraudulent payment services.    To learn more, the FTC offers "Internet Auctions:   A guide to Buyers and Sellers.   Visit their website at http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/online/auctions.shtm.   Complaints should be reported to the Internet Fraud Complaint Center.

How to Get Off Mailing Lists.    Contact the Direct Marketing Association, a trade group of telephone and mail marketers, to remove your name from national contact lists.    Mail your requests for removal from mailing lists to Mail Preference Service, PO Box 9008, Farmingdale, NY 11735-9008.   To be removed from telemarketing lists, mail you request to Telephone Preference Service, PO Box 9014, Farmingdale, NY 11735-9014.      Visit the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) Consumer Assistance at www.dmaconsumers.org.

Product Recalls.        For information on recent recalls.     Visit www.recalls.gov.

Department of Corporations - Alerts!

• Escrow Services:  List of companies that may be offering escrow services over the internet.  Please note that these companies are not licensed by the California Department of Corporations to engage in business as an escrow agent.  It appears that these companies may be operating in violation of California Law.
• Lending Services:  List of companies that may be offering lending services over the internet.   Please note that these companies are not licensed by the California Department of Corporations to engage in business as a consumer finance lender or a residential mortgage lender.  It appears that these companies may be operating in violation of California law.
• Licensing Claims:  List of companies advertising that they are licensed by the Department of Corporations on their website.  Please note that these companies are not licensed by the California Department of Corporations to engage in business under the laws administered by the Department. 

For information to help you recognize internet hoaxes and scams, visit the Department of Corporations website at www.corp.ca.gov/alerts.

Internet Crime Complaint Center - Alert!

Vishing Attacks Increase (Prepared by The Internet Crime Complaint Center)

Are you one of many who have received an e-mail, text message, or telephone call, purportedly from your credit card/debit card company directing you to contact a telephone number to re-activate your card due to a security issue?   The IC3 has received multiple reports on different variations of this scheme known as "vishing".   These attacks against US financial institutions and consumers continue to rise at an alarming rate.

Vishing operates like phishing by persuading consumers to divulge their Personally Identifiable Information (PII), claiming their account was suspended, deactivated or terminated.   Recipients are directed to contact their bank via telephone number provided in the e-mail or by an automated recording.   Upon calling the telephone number, the recipient is greeted with "Welcome to the bank of..." and then requested to enter their card number in order to resolve a pending security issue.

Due to rapidly evolving criminal methodologies, it is impossible to include every scenario.   Therefore, be cognizant and protect your PII.  Beware of e-mails, telephone calls, or text messages requesting your PII.

If you have questions about your account, you should contact your bank using a telephone number from your statement or a telephone book. 

If you have received this or a similar hoax, please file a complaint at the Internet Crime Complaint Center.    Their site also has updates on new scams and warnings.    Visit their website at www.ic3.gov.

DON'T BE SCAMMED - Consumer fraud is preventable.

The following information  is provided by the National Crime Prevention  Council.   Visit their website at www.ncpc.org.

• Credit-Related Schemes: You are promised a credit card regardless of your credit history, for an advance fee.  Or you are promised credit card protection or credit repair services, also for a fee.   You pay, but the card or service is never delivered.
• Magazine Sales Schemes:  You are offered a magazine subscription at a very low price by someone who claims to work for the magazine company.  The price is misrepresented and is actually much higher, or the magazine is never delivered.
• Investment Fraud:  You are invited to participate in an investment opportunity and promised spectacular profits with no risk.  Instead of making money, you lose it.
• Overpayment Scams: You advertise something you want to sell, and a potential buyer offers to purchase it.  The buyer sends a check for more than the asking price and asks you to wire back the difference.  You do, but later the buyer's check bounces.
• Work-at-home Scams:  Advertisements promise big earnings for people who want to work at home.  You send a check for training or materials and receive a kit with cheap craft materials and discover there are no clients to pay for your work.
• Vacation/Travel Fraud:  You accept an offer for a free or very cheap travel package but end up paying hidden costs, such as reservation fees or taxes, or listening to a high-pressure sales pitch for a timeshare or club membership.
• Phishing: You get an email or pop-up message that says your account must be updated immediately or it will be closed.  You click on a link to a website that looks like it belongs to your bank or other institution and "update" your account by entering personal identifying information.  Soon you discover you are a victim of identity theft.
• Pharming:  Also called domain spoofing, the technique is used by criminals to redirect Web traffic from a legitimate server to their own server, where they can steal any personal information that the user types in.  Pharmers "poison" the Domain Name Service in order to "fool" a user's browser into linking to a bogus website.
• Nigerian Money Scam: You are contacted by someone frm Nigeria and offered millions of dollars if you will transfer money from a foreign bank to your bank account for safekeeping.  When you agree, you are asked to pay huge transfer fees or legal expenses but receive no money.
• Prize and Sweepstakes Scam: You are told that you have won a fabulous prize but must buy something or pay taxes up front in order to claim it.  The prize is a cheap trinket, worth far less than the money you paid for it.
• Foreign Lotteries Scam: You are offered tickets to enter a foreign lottery and send money, but either the lottery doesn't exist or the tickets never arrive.  It is illegal to promote a foreign lottery by telephone or mail in the United States.
• Pyramids and Multilevel Marketing:  For a fee, you are promised big profits in exchange for recruiting new members.  Plans that promise profits for recruitment of members rather than for selling goods and services are illegal and usually collapse.
• Scholarship Scams:  A company guarantees scholarship money for an upfront fee, but it only helps locate scholarships rather than awarding them.
• Charity Scams:  A natural disaster is dominating the news and you get a letter/email/phone call asking you to donate funds to help its victims.  You send money, but the victims never receive your donation or receive only a tiny portion -- the rest goes to cover administrative costs like salaries.
• Bogus Merchandise Sales:  You purchase something advertised for sale on the internet or through a telemarketing call.  You pay for the merchandise but never receive it or receive an inferior or counterfeit product in its place.
• Telephone Cramming:  Unauthorized charges for goods or services appear on your phone bill, but you miss seeing them because your phone bill is complicated with authorized charges such as voice mail and internet service.
• Telephone Slamming:  Your telephone service is switched from your current company to another one without your knowledge or permission, resulting in higher charges for long distance and other services.