We’ve barely waded into the hectic holiday shopping season, but retailers are already preparing for a rush of returns after the big day — and the scams that inevitably go along with them. [More]
scam
Feds Arrest 61 For Alleged Indian Call Center Scam That Bilked Millions From Consumers
By 10.27.16 — Updated: 10.31.16
Earlier this month, police in India detained hundreds of employees in three different call centers for allegedly proliferating a scam that involved calling unsuspecting consumers masquerading as employees with the Internal Revenue Service and threatening to arrest if the person didn’t pay up. This week, federal authorities in the U.S. followed up on the case, ending a three-year investigation by arresting dozens of people in the U.S. and India for allegedly scamming tens of thousands of consumers out of millions of dollars through the sophisticated call center scheme. [More]
The Latest In Phishing Scams: Instagram’s “Ugly List”
By 10.4.16
No one wants to be called names, and no one wants those hurtful names to be blasted all over social media. Unfortunately, it appears fraudsters are taking advantage of those fears with an “ugly list” phishing scam making the rounds on Instagram. [More]
Interpol Nabs Accused Kingpin Of $60M Global Email Scam In Nigeria
By 8.1.16
Fighting spam scammers might sometimes seem like a pointless game of Whac-A-Mole, but international law enforcement authorities say they have bopped one particularly large mole on the head by arresting the alleged ringleader of a global email scam ring that swindled $60 million from its victims. [More]
Woman Out $250 After Falling Victim To Comcast, Amazon Fake Promotion Scheme
By 7.26.16
Consider yourself warned: Scammers are taking advantage of the recent news that Amazon is selling access to Comcast services, faking calls from the cable company to steal money from unwitting victims.
[More]
4 Ways To Avoid The “Student Loan Tax” Scam
By 6.6.16
Being on the hook for thousands of dollars in student loan debt is pressure enough for most people. They shouldn’t also have to worry about being taken advantage of by “student loan tax” fraudsters in what appears to be the latest iteration of the IRS impersonation scam. [More]
Banks Are The Key To Stopping Scammers That Target One In Five Older Americans
By 3.23.16
If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a million time: those who attempt – and often succeed – at scamming senior citizens of their savings are the worst of the worst when it comes to already unsavory, immoral fraudsters. Despite regulators’ attempts to take these operations out of commission, one in five older Americans report being the victims of financial exploitations either by ne’er-do-wells or family members. [More]
Payday Loan Operator MoneyTree Latest Company To Fall For CEO Email Scam
By 3.16.16
Employees of payday lending company Moneytree are used to taking the personal information of customers in exchange for short-term cash infusions. Some of those workers recently found themselves on the other side of the fence after someone at the company fell for the CEO email scam. [More]
Identity Theft Victim Confronts Alleged Scammer
By 3.8.16
There’s an episode of Friends in which Monica’s identity is stolen and she goes on to become best friends with the woman posing as Monica Geller, you know, before she goes to jail. Things didn’t so quite the same for a Los Angeles woman who says she confronted a couple she alleges used her identity to open credit card accounts and file income tax returns. [More]
Feds Order Debt Relief Schemes To Cease Misleading Use Of Government Logos
By 1.29.16
Even though it’s incredibly easy to slap a government agency’s logo on your website, that doesn’t make it okay. Just ask the two debt relief companies that have been ordered to stop using Department of Education logos to mislead student loan borrowers. [More]
Most Scams Use The Same Three Underlying Tactics To Steal Your Money
By 1.13.16
From fraudsters bilking the elderly by posing as their cash-strapped grandkids, to fake lawyers defrauding immigrants in need of legal help, we’ve covered a wide range of scams on Consumerist. But while there are countless variations on these crimes, they are all based on the same few ideas. [More]
Beware Of The Santa Scam: There’s Nothing Holly Jolly About Identity Theft
By 12.22.15
Imagine the look in your child’s eye when they open one last gift on Christmas morning. This one isn’t a toy car, a baby doll, or some electronic, it’s a handwritten letter from everyone’s favorite big guy, Santa. But for every legitimate company that offers to send “Santa letters” or provide calls from Jolly Ol’ St. Nick, there’s bound to be another that just wants to Scrooge you out of your money — or worse. [More]
Beware: Delivery Scams Are The Grinch Of The Holiday Season
By 12.21.15
With just days remaining before Christmas, you might be impatiently waiting for a few last deliveries to show up at your door. While those deliveries might be a sight for sore eyes, there’s another – of the scammy kind – that you should be on the look out for. [More]
Feds Sue Scammers Who Charged For Bogus Student Financial Aid Assistance
By 10.29.15
Paying for college out of pocket is nearly impossible for millions of prospective students. Instead, these individuals turn to scholarships, grants, and student loans, often relying on financial service programs to assist them in obtaining the funds. But not all of the companies promising a helping hand are looking out for your best interests. That was apparently the case for a California company accused of ripping off tens of thousands of victims in a nationwide financial aid scam. [More]
Couple Plead Guilty To Scamming Kohl’s Of $600,000 In Rewards Cash
By 10.29.15
Sure, sometimes that Kohl’s cash you earned goes to waste: you forgot about it or found there simply wasn’t anything in the store you could use it on. One New Jersey couple apparently didn’t have those problems. Instead, police say they created a system to scam the retailer’s rewards program to the tune of $600,000 in products. [More]
Operator Of Bogus Debt-Relief Scheme Must Return $7.9M To Harmed Consumers
By 10.5.15
The operator of a bogus debt relief scheme that federal regulates say only left consumers deeper in debt must provide some actual assistance to those affected by the program in the form of a $7.9 million judgment imposed by the Federal Trade Commission. [More]
Using Only His Phone, Man Scams 217 Macy’s Stores Into Issuing Fraudulent Refunds
By 9.18.15
If you plan to go on a scamming spree, you probably shouldn’t use your actual email address when completing the transactions. That was ultimately the undoing for a Georgia man who federal authorities say duped more than 200 Macy’s stores in 31 states into issuing fraudulent refunds — and all without having to drive to the mall. [More]
CFPB Releases Educational Guides To Help Non-English Speakers Avoid Scams, Understand Financial Issues
By 7.10.15
Understanding the world of finance can be difficult for just about anyone in this country, but especially so when the rules of the industry are written in a language that you might not be proficient in. For these consumers, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has created a new set of guides aimed at helping them avoid financial devastation. [More]
