Beware Of Fraudulent Companies And Scams

Don't be a victim of fraud. Learn how to protect your credit and your good name from telephone scams, telemarketing scams, and mail scams.

It's unfortunate, but there are people who'll do anything for a free ride. The Merriam-Webster's dictionary definestelemarketing fraud as "deceit, trickery; specifically: intentional perversion of truth in order to induce another to part with something of value or to surrender a legal right." It may sound a little scary, but you can protect yourself.

Telemarketing Fraud

Your credit card company may call to tell you about a new partnership with a long-distance company. Your cable company may call to see if you're interested in their new high-speed cable Internet connection. While telemarketing can be an annoyance at times, it's a legitimate form of business and one that continues to grow. You should be aware, however, that not all telemarketing calls are legitimate. Examples of past scams include:

• Prizes, sweepstakes, and lotteries that have no real value.

• Bogus charities that don't exist.

• Investments or fake business opportunities that are rigged or illegal.

There are even recovery scams where people call to help you get the money back that you lost in a previous telemarketing scam. They get you once and then turn around and get you again.

How Do You Know if It's a Telephone Scam?

Since not every phone call or letter is a scam, it's a good idea to know what to look for to identify potential fraud situations. You might suspect fraud if you're:

• Being pressured to make an immediate decision or to "act now" about a special offer.

• Asked to send money or give your credit card or bank account number over the phone.

• The grand prize winner of a free item, but have to pay postage and handling or tax to collect the item.

• Looking at documents that appear to be from a government agency, but don't list a well-known department.

• Instructed to call a 900 or other toll number for more information.

• Not able to find the company's name, address or phone number clearly listed on the material.

• Asked to send money in a chain letter.

Mail Scams

You not only need to be cautious about the phone calls you receive, you also need to be alert to the items in your mailbox. In addition to the telemarketing scams listed above, mail fraud has included:

• Notification that you've won a prize, and finding out you have to buy a magazine subscription to get it.

• The opportunity to invest in foreign lotteries when it's against the law to sell or purchase lottery tickets across borders.

Internet Email Scams

What about fraud in your "virtual" mailbox? Today, Internet email scams are targeting millions of people.Phishing is the term used to describe this type of fraud. One very common phishing scheme is a phony email that seems to come from an organization with which you have an Internet login account — either a well-known auction site (such as eBay), or an online payment site (such as PayPal), or even from your bank. Usually the email threatens that you will not be able to use your account unless you update certain private information (for example, password and details that will allow access to the Internet account, or perhaps a credit card number). You are told to click on a web link that seems to take you to the webpage of the bank or online dealer, but in fact it is a fake site. For more information about email scams that try to steal your personal financial information, see ezinearticles.com The Latest Email Scam Is Nothing New.

Another common phishing sting, known as the Check Overpayment Scam, is when someone attempts to engage you in a business transaction in which you will receive an authentic-looking money order or check that has a value much greater than the purchase terms. You are instructed to wire a refund of the balance overseas. The payment you receive is actually fake. Because of current banking laws, the payment appears to be good, since your bank makes the funds from the deposit available to you within one to five days, before the bank has actually cleared (received) the money from the sender's financial institution. But in fact, it is not, which means that you lose a large sum of money, and in some instances can even be criminally prosecuted for bank fraud.

For more information about phishing and what to do about it, read the University of Bristol article Financial Fraud Online (phishing).

What Can You Do?

You can do several things about potential fraud. To protect yourself from telemarketing and postal service fraud, you can:

• Put your name on theNational Do Not Call Registry of telemarketing companies. The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) requires companies, excluding tax-exempt non-profits, to maintain these lists for 10 years. It can take a couple of weeks for the company to put you on the list, so be patient.

• Report suspected mail scams to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Mail Fraud Complaint Center at 800-372-8347. You can submit a complaint online using the USPIScomplaint form, or you can contact your nearest Postal Inspector.

• Contact the Consumer Response Center of the Federal Trade Commission at 877-FTC-HELP (382-4357). You can also submit a complaint online using the FTC's Consumer Complaint Form. Also read the FTC Consumer Alert Where to Go to Just Say No, which has a sample Opt-Out letter that can be sent to direct marketers.

• Opt-out of the marketing lists maintained by theDirect Marketing Association. Companies, both legitimate and illegitimate, buy these lists to get your information. Read the DMA's article Getting Off Telephone Call Lists and visit the DMA Mail Preference Service webpage. To be removed from the lists, send your name, address, and phone number to the address below. There is currently a charge of $1. You can use the sample Opt-Out letter in the FTC link above.

To protect yourself from Internet email fraud, be suspicious. If you receive email that requests private information or asks you to "update" your information, always verify the source of the email. Never click on any links provided within the email and start submitting private data. Instead, open a new browser window and type in the URL address of the organization supposedly sending the email (for example, www.ebay.com or www.paypal.com). Look for the Help or Customer Service section, and contact them about the email.

If you receive an email offer to accept funds via check or money order, with the understanding that you refund some of that money to the sender, be very, very careful. It is probably a fraud.

For more information about Internet fraud, visit the U.S. federal government website www.onguardonline.gov. Before doing business with any unfamiliar organization, check it out with the Better Business Bureau, the Attorney General of your state (www.naag.org), or your state's consumer affairs office.

General Credit Fraud

The sections above deal with specific mechanisms for fraud, but there are more subtle ways for thieves to victimize you, including:

• Adding charges on your credit card.

• Opening a cellular phone account in your name.

• Setting up utilities in your name.

• Overdrawing your checking account.

Protect Yourself

Here's a list of ways to protect your credit information from telephone scams, telemarketing scams, and mail scams:

• Be careful about using your debit card because it doesn't have the same protection as a credit card.

• Cover the keypad of the ATM when you enter your PIN.

• Don't give out your credit card numbers to people who call you.

• Don't lend your credit cards to other people.

• Don't use cordless phones for catalog orders because it's possible to remotely listen in on your conversations and record your credit card number.

• Don't write your ATM PIN on the card itself or any other easily accessible location.

• Give waiters and waitresses your signed credit card receipt instead of leaving it on the table.

• If it sounds too good to be true, it may be, so check it out.

• Know how your Social Security Number is being used.

• Mail bills in government mailboxes or at the post office; don't leave them laying out where others can get to them.

• Make sure you get credit cards back when you use them for a purchase.

• Read the privacy statements on all websites, particularly the ones where you provide personal and credit information.

• Read the small print.

• Report problems immediately to the credit card company.

• Review your credit report once a year and report any errors immediately.

• Review your statements each month and compare them to the receipts.

• Shred all documents that contain your personal information.

Stay alert to the possibilities of fraud, whether it be over the telephone, through the postal service, or via the Internet. Protect yourself using the tips and ideas discussed. See the Top Things You Can Do To Protect Your Privacy at the ConsumerPrivacyGuide.org website.

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