Criminal organizations from all over the world are hard at work finding ways to steal from us. The more aware one is of their methods, the less likely to be scammed.
Emails Promising You Money
This is one of the most common methods. Scammers, frequently from Nigeria, send emails promising vast sums of money (or even a few bucks) for little or no effort. You may receive one that says that you’ve won a prize, sweepstakes, or lottery, and the money is waiting for you. You’ll be asked to pay a fee or wire money in order to receive a larger amount of money back from them.
If something sounds too good to be true it probably is, especially if you don’t know the person.
If you are on the receiving end of a possible scam or believe you are a victim, report it to your state consumer protection office or the federal government. You also can report online and international scams to the Internet Crime Complaint Center. https://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx
Wire Transfer Requests
Watch out for scammers posing as your friends or relatives. They may say they’re having a crisis and need you to wire money immediately. One example is an email from someone you know who says they lost their wallet in a strange city and they need some help.
Know that once the money leaves your account, it’s gone, and you can’t ask the bank to undo the transfer.
Be aware when selling items online
If you’re selling something that you’ve advertised online, be wary of accepting anything but cash in person or payment through a secure method. Scammers have all kinds of ways to cheat you out of money even when you’re supposed to be the one collecting money.
One example of this is a cashier’s check scam: A buyer offers to make a purchase by sending you a cashier’s check, but they send a check for the wrong about (usually more than the cost of the item). They ask you to deposit the check and wire them the overage. A week or so after you wire the money, that you find out the check was fraudulent and that you’re responsible for paying it back to the bank if you’ve withdrawn it or spent it.
Threats and harassment
A thief’s goal is to pray on your hopes and fears until you hand over your cash. They might tell you that you’ll go to jail, lose your job, or somehow face humiliation if you fail to make “required” payments (none of which they can accomplish legally).
Emails That Don’t Look Quite Right
For example, you might get an email from what you think is Amazon or Paypal saying that your credit card didn’t go through or something similar. Look closely at the email address and odds are that it didn’t come from the vendor. Also, if you notice bad spelling and grammar, you might be dealing with an overseas phishing scam. If you see any of the warning signs above then it’s best not to engage with the scammer at all.
Rick is a financial coach with a passion for teaching people how to manage their money so they are making better decisions and have less stress in their lives. He can be
reached at rick@rightpath-fc.com.
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