Resources to protect you from scams
moneyrelations :: Nov.22.2007
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I have found my ticket to retirement.
Forget about learning to be a better investor or maximizing other sources of income; a Nigerian doctor sent me an email offering to transfer millions of dollars to my bank account! I need to act on this now and all I have to do is give him my personal banking information!
Yippee!
…
Seriously, do people actually fall for this?
But if crooks weren’t making money in these schemes, we wouldn’t be spammed to oblivion, n’est pas?
I recently talked to someone who works in the area of fraud; while you think you won’t fall for something as “transparent” as a Nigerian letter scam, there are many other flavors of “advanced fee” scams.
Advanced fee scams usually involve a business proposition, a lottery/inheritance windfall, or job/loan offers. They all require some sort of advanced “processing fee” to unlock whatever carrot they are dangling.
Sounds simple enough, eh? But I was surprised when I read the list of common scams and tactics found on the Phonebusters website. Scammers prey not only on the get rich quick dreamers but also on the kind-hearted people as well.
There are puppy scams and charity scams which I can readily see people falling for in the spirit of giving during the holiday season.
So, how do we protect ourselves from these crooks? Arm yourself with knowledge by visiting the links below. Learn to recognize the scams and report ‘em!
Canada:
Phonebusters – Telemarketing scams
Royal Canadian Mounted Police – Fraud
U.S.:
Federal Bureau of Investigation – Fraud
Internet Crime Complaint Center – Telemarketing fraud
LookstooGoodtobeTrue – Online or mail fraud
U.K:
Metropolitan Police – Fraud
Charity, Holidays ::
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Me too. Me too! I apparently have a long lost relative in England who died and left millions of dollars. I might be next of kin.
Seriously, though years ago I was approached by a cheque scam. I was selling furniture and all my stuff because I was moving to Australia. Someone e-mailed, and said if they could buy my elliptical for $200 with a $1000 cheque. I just cash it, keep $200 plus shipping and mail him the rest.
This was before the scam was well known so I had no idea. Anyway, I was suspicious. I told him to cash his own cheque because i’m doing cash only. Phew!
Hi Esme,
Geez, you were right to be suspicious. Funny that his victims would be the ones that were unscrupulous, no? So maybe there is karma involved…
Thanks for dropping by, and nice blog!
Great blog!
[...] from Money Relations presents Resources to protect you from scams, and says, “Protect yourself this holiday season by recognizing [...]
I actually get a kick out of crafting a nice reply, asking if it is OK to involve a few friends, some that actually live were they come from, using addresses like 742 Evergreen Terrace, AKA the Simpson’s etc etc… funny I never get a reply…oh well have to keep my day job.
LOL, and you would too given your forum rants
You’re just evil 
I need to get one of those smiley plugins for the evil smiley