Three months after regulators shut down a credit repair company catering mainly to Spanish-speaking consumers for falsely claiming to have a close relationship with the federal government – calling itself “FTC Credit Solutions” – and bilking thousands of dollars from individual consumers with empty promises of boosting their credit scores, the real Federal Trade Commission announced it has reached a settlement that will result in the return of $2.4 million to victims of the scam. [More]
Crime & Fraud
Operators Of Credit Repair Business Masquerading As The FTC Must Return $2.4M To Consumers
By 8.4.15
Scam Alert: Microsoft Is Not Upgrading Computers To Windows 10 Through Email
By 8.3.15
First and foremost: If you’re a Windows 7 or 8 user, Microsoft will not email you to upgrade to Windows 10. If you do get an email along those lines, it’s probably a scam and if you download what’s inside, bad guys could hold your computer’s files for ransom. [More]
Just Because You Find $150K Sitting Around Doesn’t Mean You Get To Keep It, Buy A New Car
By 7.31.15
One might think that the average adult would be aware that the playground rule of “finders, keepers” doesn’t apply to most situations in life that aren’t scavenger hunts. But one would be wrong, if the police investigating the theft of a bag filled with $150,000 in cash are correct. [More]
Police: Man Pretended He Was His Brother To Avoid $7,500 In Unpaid Tolls
By 7.31.15
It’s a classic caper: passing yourself off as your brother or sister to squirm out of trouble when you’re caught doing something you shouldn’t. But New Jersey police say one man didn’t quite pull off the sibling switcheroo when he was stopped for $7,500 in unpaid tolls. [More]
Judge Backtracks On Walmart Shoplifter’s Lifetime Ban From All U.S. Stores
By 7.29.15
Earlier this week a Walmart shoplifter said she likely wouldn’t follow a court order barring her from stepping inside any of the retailer’s thousands of locations. Turns out, that might not have been such a brazen statement after all, as the judge who handed down the lifetime ban clarified that he didn’t really mean to prevent the woman from entering all stores. [More]
Stupid Scammers Sell Play-Doh “iPhones,” Get Caught When Victim Asks To Buy More
By 7.28.15
Dear dumb criminals: If you’re lucky enough to trick someone into buying an iPhone box full of Play-Doh, consider your crappy, evil job done and move on to the next victim. Because if that buyer calls you back asking to purchase more “iPhones,” they’re either less-intelligent than you, or you’re about to be arrested. [More]
Telemarketers Took Millions From Senior Citizens In Medicare Card Scam
By 7.27.15
There’s now one less unsavory, immoral, disrespectful group scamming senior citizens of their savings, as federal regulators took action against the operators of a scheme in which telemarketers pretended to be Medicare representatives in order to bilk millions of dollars from older consumers. [More]
Shoplifter Says Lifetime Ban From Walmart Won’t Stop Her From Shopping There
By 7.27.15
Much like there are people driving with suspended or revoked licenses, not everyone banned from life from entering a Walmart abides by that order. But most of these folks don’t go around brazenly telling reporters that they intend to violate a court order. [More]
Fiat Chrysler Recalling 1.4M Vehicles Amid Concerns Over Remote Hack Attacks
By 7.24.15
With the steely eye of the government fixed firmly on Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV, the company agreed today to recall 1.4 million vehicles that could be susceptible to remote hack attacks. This, a few days after researchers teamed up with a reporter to show how a Jeep Cherokee could be controlled wirelessly from miles away. [More]
Police: Man Who Called 9-1-1 Lied About Having Chest Pains, Just Wanted Help Fixing His AC
By 7.23.15
Despite the plethora of services that are available these days at the touch of a button, there are still those who seem determined to stick with calling 9-1-1 — even when there’s no actual emergency. Police in Pennsylvania say a man who called complaining of chest pains was fit as a fiddle, and actually just needed help fixing his air conditioning. [More]
Fiat Chrysler Offers Software Patch For Some Internet-Connected Vehicles After Hackers Hijack Jeep
By 7.23.15
After a journalist’s report of being inside a 2014 Jeep Cherokee while hackers miles away took over his car as part of an experiment, Fiat Chrysler has announced it’s offering a software patch for some of its internet-connected vehicles. That being said, the company didn’t directly acknowledge the hacking event itself. [More]
Buyers Of Convicted Liar Kevin Trudeau’s Weight Loss Book May Finally Be Getting Refunds
By 7.22.15
Last year, author Kevin Trudeau was sentenced to 10 years behind bars for repeatedly violating pledges to stop lying about the content of his book The Weight Loss Cure “They” Don’t Want You to Know About. Yesterday, nearly a decade after Trudeau was first held in contempt over his misleading claims about this book, a federal judge gave the go-ahead for a plan to finally issue refunds to consumers who purchased the title. [More]
New York Sues Leukemia “Charity” For Allegedly Raising $10 Million Through Deception
By 7.21.15
Most of us understand that not every dollar given to a charity is going directly to the people or causes that the charitable organization supports, but when the charity tells lies about how your money will be spent and instead wastes nearly every penny on enriching a handful of employees, a line is crossed. [More]
Ashley Madison Says It’s Secured All Customer Data After Hack Attack
By 7.21.15
After a group of hackers posted a sampling of user data stolen from AshleyMadison.com, the parent company of the dating site for cheaters says it’s secured all customer information that was allegedly leaked. [More]
What It’s Like To Be Inside A Car When Hackers Take Control From Miles Away
By 7.21.15
It sounds like a nightmare: You’re driving along, maybe whistling along to the radio, when suddenly the music changes and starts blasting, the car begins honking and won’t stop and the transmission cuts out. Nightmarish though that may sound, it could be a reality for drivers, after a team of hackers showed they’re able to get control of a vehicle from miles away. [More]
Ex-Lottery Worker Convicted Of Rigging The System So He’d Win $14M Jackpot
By 7.20.15
There’s a very obvious reason why lottery employees aren’t allowed to play for prizes like the rest of the country in many states, as they could have an obvious advantage when it comes to figuring out how to reap big rewards. As such, one ex-lottery worker from Iowa (where it’s illegal for lotto employees to play) has been convicted of rigging the system, fixing it so he could buy the right numbers and win a $14 million jackpot. [More]
Shirtless Guy Climbs Two Fences At San Diego Airport, Runs Onto A Runway
By 7.17.15
Though it’s no easy feat to scale a fence (at least, not easy for me), authorities at San Diego International Airport say a man managed to climb not one, but two security fences and ran onto a runway Thursday night. [More]
Police Arrest Man On Suspicion Of Knocking Over Girls’ Lemonade Stand, Stealing $30
By 7.17.15
As any ambitious kid (or former kid) who’s tried to bring in a big haul from running a sidewalk lemonade stand knows, it isn’t easy to make a lot of money from selling drinks for a nickel (or $1, whatever a cup of lemonade goes for these days). Two young entrepreneurial spirits faced an even tougher situation for their fledgling business, after police say a guy overturned their lemonade stand and made off with all their profits. [More]
