Scammy robocalls and scammy telemarketers hurt more than just innocent people who answer their phones at home. They also hurt the innocent people whose phone numbers they use to display on caller ID. Like the staff of a Florida dentist’s office who can barely have a conversation with their patients before another scam call target is on the line, ready to unleash a torrent of profanities. [More]
scams
Infomercial Shill Kevin Trudeau Sentenced To 10 Years For Repeatedly Defrauding Consumers
By 3.18.14
Back in November, TV pitchman, bestselling author and repeat offender Kevin Trudeau was found guilty of criminal contempt after continuing to make fraudulent weight-loss claims in the marketing of his book The Weight Loss Cure “They” Don’t Want You to Know About. Yesterday, they had their final say in the matter, sentencing the fraudster to a decade behind bars. [More]
Florida Psychic Sentenced To 10 Years In Prison For Defrauding Clients Out Of $17.8M
By 3.4.14
The next time someone tells you that you will die and be reborn so you can reunite with your late child and marry Brad Pitt, don’t do it, and don’t pay a psychic millions for telling that fortune. A Florida psychic convicted of defrauding clients of her family fortune-telling business is heading to jail after bilking people out of at least $17.8 million in various schemes. [More]
Beware Of Fake Verizon “Tech Support” Scammers Calling From Actual Verizon Tech Support Number
By 2.26.14
There have been variations on the “tech support” cold-call scam for years, with the scammers attempting to take advantage of some consumers’ naivete about electronics. But a new version of the scam appears to go a step further, by making it appear like the person is actually calling from a legitimate tech support number. [More]
Protect Your Refund: Consumer Advocates Warn Tax Scammers Will Steal Your Identity
By 2.25.14
It’s that time of year again: tax time. While almost everyone is excited for their well-earned tax return to arrive, there’s a group of people ready to take that money away from you. Thankfully, the National Consumers League wants to make sure consumers don’t fall victim to tax ID thieves. [More]
Arrest Warrant Issued For “Cash Grant Institute” Scammer Who Failed To Pay $20 Million Penalty
By 2.20.14
Nearly two years after the FTC hit the scammy robocallers at the “Cash Grant Institute” with a record $30 million penalty for violating federal Do Not Call regulations a few million times, a judge has issued an arrest warrant for one of the scheme’s operators after he failed to repay the lion’s share of what he’d agreed to hand over. [More]
FTC Stops “Work-at-Home” Job Scammers From Working Anywhere With $55m Settlement
By 2.20.14
Some jobs really do let you work from home part or all of the time. And some jobs really do pay $50 or more per hour. Those jobs don’t come knocking on your door asking you to take them, though, and they don’t advertise openings through overly excited, unsolicited e-mails and texts. But scammers do offer those “opportunities” in spam galore–and of course, they are actually opportunities for miscreants to part consumers from their money. The FTC, however, does not take kindly to scammers using deceptive tactics to pry money out of people, and has just shut several of them down. [More]
Scam E-Mail Lying About Friend’s Death Brings World Of Grief For Guy Who Clicked
By 2.19.14
It can be a real shock to hear about the sudden death of someone you know. So shocking that you might let your guard down and immediately seek more information. That’s what some fraudsters are counting on. They send you an e-mail entitled “Passing Of Your Friend” that looks like a legit notice from a funeral home, but is neither. [More]
Click On The Link In That ‘Funeral Notice’ E-mail At Your Own Risk
By 2.13.14
Most e-mail scams try to take advantage of consumers’ curiosity, which is why phishing messages promising sex and/or porn still dominate the scam spam landscape. But some online jerks are trying to tap into an equally primal, but less crude, instinct by sending out fake funeral notices in the hope that people won’t be able to keep themselves from clicking away. [More]
The FBI Reminds You That The Supermodel Wooing You Online May Just Be A Scammer
By 2.12.14
So that woman who began writing to you the other day — you know, the one whose photos look suspiciously like she’s a member of the Russian Ladies Curling team? The FBI says she might not be the leggy answer to your romantic dreams, but may just be looking to scam you out of your cash. [More]
Teen Scams Walmarts Out Of $30,000 By Pretending To Be Manager From Another Walmart
By 2.10.14
I once knew a guy who said that with the right outfit and enough confidence, you can get through any door. Looks like a 17-year-old in Oklahoma took that lesson to heart, walking into multiple area Walmarts and walking out with wads of cash in his pocket. [More]
Trio Convicted Of Running Fake Nursing Schools
By 2.7.14
When you scam wannabe nurses out of more than a million dollars by selling them a fake education, you have to expect you’ll get caught at some point. But that didn’t stop three women in New York from operating a number of bogus nursing school programs in NYC and Long Island. [More]
FTC Settles With Spammer Who Sent Millions Of Deceptive Texts
By 2.5.14
Junk mail and e-mail spam are annoying enough, but text message spam can be truly aggravating. Not only is it pointless, but also, depending on your phone plan, you may get charged for the privilege of having to delete scummy, scammy links. [More]
Telemarketers Must Pay $14.75 Million Judgment, Because Scamming People Is Wrong
By 2.3.14
When you’ve make a promise to no longer defraud consumers, you might want to stick to that promise. Otherwise, like two Florida businessmen, you could be on the hook for $14.75 million. [More]
Travel Club Scammer Sentenced To 7 Years Behind Bars
By 1.31.14
We told you last summer about the New Jersey couple who pleaded guilty to charges they swindled millions of dollars from consumers through bogus “travel clubs” that promised discount travel deals but never delivered. Today, the husband was sentenced to seven years in prison while his wife got off with five years of probation. [More]
The IRS Will Not Call To Collect Your Overdue Taxes Via Greendot MoneyPak
By 1.29.14
Police across the country have a warning for the public. It should be obvious that the Internal Revenue Service will not call you up and threaten to throw you in prison unless you load money onto their prepaid debit card. This isn’t obvious to everyone, though, and scammers use that to their advantage. [More]
Officials Bust Two Men Accused Of Peddling Fake Premium Super Bowl Tickets
By 1.29.14
Whenever there’s a big event in town, people are going to start looking for any kind of deal they can score to get in. And when those people go searching, inevitably scammers find them and try to sell unsuspecting fans fake tickets. This year’s Super Bowl is no different, as officials say two men have been accused of shilling bogus tickets to the big game and fake passes for cushy parties in New York. [More]
Trio Charged With Running “One-Stop Shop” For Blank Bogus Credit Cards, Holographic Overlays
By 1.24.14
All that credit and debit card information that gets stolen when criminals hack places like Target and Neiman Marcus is only worth so much to an ID thief. Sure, one could use that info to place online orders, but you’re just asking to be tracked down and caught that way. The real prize comes when you take that information and create real-looking credit cards with it. [More]
