You may have heard radio ads for weight loss supplements named AF Plus and Final Trim, promising “24 hours of fat burning power” and “maximum weight loss,” along with supposed real-world testimonials about how well these pills worked — and how you can try them now through a “risk-free” trial. Problem is, those people in the ads claiming they lost all that weight are just as fictitious as the free trial. [More]
scams
Scammy Sellers Of AF Plus, Final Trim Weight-Loss Pills Made Millions From Bogus “Risk-Free” Trials
By 2.5.16
What Does A Grocery Store PIN Pad Skimmer Look Like?
By 2.3.16
Have you ever wondered how customers could slide their cards through and enter their PINs on a compromised payment terminal without even noticing? While some skimming schemes involve Bluetooth transmitters and require disassembling the device, installing a skimmer can be as simple as snapping an identical part over an existing card reader. [More]
4 Things We Learned About Fake Locksmith Scammers Lurking Online
By 2.1.16
The moment you realize you’re locked out of your car or your home is never a good one. But now that everyone is armed with a smartphone, it’s an easy thing to search for a local locksmith on Google and have someone show up to the rescue. But not every listing out there is tied to a legitimate business, as scammy fake locksmith companies are hiding in plain sight, waiting to slam customers with pricy bills for their services. [More]
How To Avoid Becoming A Victim Of A Super Bowl Ticketing Scam
By 1.29.16
Whenever there’s a widely publicized event bringing in people from all over like the Super Bowl, you better believe there will be scammers lurking in the shadows, waiting to prey on those unfortunate souls who desperately want to score a ticket to join the fun. This year’s big game is no different, but there are some things football fans can do to avoid becoming a victim to a scam. [More]
“Artisanal Spam” Is Today’s Sneaky New Trend In Email Scams
By 1.19.16
Because we live in a world where everything trendy is farm-to-table, or handcrafted, or whittled by free-trade fairies from reclaimed wood, we’re not entirely surprised that the new thing in email scams is something called “artisanal spam.” [More]
ID Thieves Also Use Call Centers To Outsource Their Scams
By 1.15.16
We all know that a lot of businesses outsource customer service work to call centers around the world. But what you may not know is that there are also call centers that specialize — and openly advertise — their services in aiding ID theft and other cyber fraud. [More]
Colorado Investigating Scammers Who Hoard DMV Appointments, Sell Them To Undocumented Residents
By 1.8.16
When something is free, but it’ll take a long time to get it, there’s always the chance that someone will try to take advantage of the situation to make a profit off impatient people. In Colorado, the attorney general’s office is investigating a scalping scheme that involves scammers hoarding driver’s license appointments with the Department of Motor Vehicles, then turning around and selling them to undocumented residents. [More]
ID Thieves Hijacking Accounts To Cash In On Bogus Warranties
By 1.6.16
In a pre-online era, when we made most purchases in person, getting a warranty replacement on a broken product often required taking the defective item back to where you bought it. But now that we’re all buying things online, a number of retailers are willing to ship you a replacement on the understanding that you’ll immediately return the original item. ID thieves are taking advantage of this goodwill, hijacking customers’ accounts and convincing companies to send them free replacements for items they never bought. [More]
Your Cable Company Will Not Ask You To Make Your Payment At A Gas Station
By 12.30.15
Some scams are so outrageously stupid, we have a hard time believing anyone falls for them. But scammers would pull these obvious tricks if they didn’t work at least some of the time. [More]
Regulators Stop Alleged Office Supply Scam That Targeted Charitable Organizations, Small Businesses
By 12.29.15
We’ve said it a thousand times: scammers are the worst, and those that take advantage of organizations trying to do good in the world are the lowest of the low. Such was allegedly the case for Liberty Supply Co., which federal regulators have accused of running an office supply scam that targeted charitable organizations and small businesses. [More]
In Wake Of Storms, Don’t Be Taken In By Home-Repair Scams Or Fake Charities
By 12.28.15
Over the weekend, tornadoes ripped through the Dallas area, rending homes into piles of wood and destroying lives. Additionally, bad weather in the region resulted in damage to the property of countless other Americans. We can understand the desire to get your life back in order immediately — or to donate money to help victims — but don’t let yourself be taken in by unscrupulous scammers. [More]
No, Mark Zuckerberg Is Not Giving Away Millions In Facebook Stock To People Who Copy, Paste Something
By 12.28.15
Have you ever heard of someone who was rewarded with millions of dollars just for copying and pasting text? It sounds like a hard job to get, because it is — it doesn’t exist. That’s why no one is going to get free shares of Facebook stock simply by slapping a chunk of text into a status message and posting it. You will, however, get more people to realize how gullible you are. [More]
That 40% Off All Kroger Purchases Coupon Circulating On Facebook Is Just A Big Fat Scam
By 12.17.15
File this one under things we’ve said a million times and will say as many times as it takes to keep all shoppers away from scammy things: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is… especially if it’s showing up all over Facebook. So it goes with the most recent coupon scam circulating social media, a fake Kroger coupon offering 40% off all store purchases. [More]
Feds: Hackers Spammed More Than 60 Million People Using Stolen Data
By 12.15.15
Though it seems hard to believe anyone could make money by sending out spammy emails promising enhanced improvement of a certain kind, or fake watches that look like the real thing, there are still those out there willing to give it a go. And according to the U.S. government, three hackers used stolen data to make more than $2 million in illegal profits from a spamming scheme aimed at about 60 million people. [More]
Mortgage Relief Scammers Ordered To Pay $5.4M
By 12.15.15
Eight months after federal regulators took action to stop a mortgage relief company from making hollow promises to homeowners facing foreclosure, the ringleaders behind the operation have agreed to pay more than $5.4 million in penalties and never work in the mortgage relief or telemarketing business again. [More]
How Fraudsters Can Convert Stolen Goods Into Cash Through Bargain-Hunters
By 12.11.15
Maybe you’re planning a large purchase or a big shopping trip with a certain retailer, and you seek out gift cards to that store from online gift card marketplaces. Swapping gift cards online is a unique opportunity for savings, but also provides a unique opportunity for fraudsters. [More]
No, Target Is Not Giving You A 50% Off Everything Coupon For Liking A Page On Facebook
By 11.24.15
We all want to believe that there are special coupons out there just waiting to be grabbed, and the newest questionable offer to take hold of Facebook newsfeeds involves the false promise of a coupon that will magically grant you 50% off anything at Target. [More]
