Financial scams (online, phone, mail, etc)

[outoforder2day]

I got a call from the "IRS" threatening jail time if I didn't immediately call them back. The guy left a badge number and everything. Called him back and played with him a bit. "I filed my taxes on time, I have the receipt somewhere...", "Gosh, I don't want to go to jail.", "What did you say your name was again?". After about 10 minutes of messing around, I told him I knew it was a scam and that I'd already reported his first call and would be reporting the second one as well. He acted tough, and threatened me, which I also put in the report.
Unfortunatly, nothing will ever come of it. Since I didn't actually give them any money, the issue goes to the bottom of the IRS pile. They get flooded with this stuff and don't do much to combat it.

[oktheniknow]

You could have always said after exposing them that you were recording the conversation and was sending to the authorities. That would have got their attention.

[outoforder2day]

You could have always said after exposing them that you were recording the conversation and was sending to the authorities. That would have got their attention.

This is true... I'll have to remember that for the inevitable next time.
I did use their phone number when signing up for some extra-spammy stuff. At least that's something.

[surfivor]

 The government, police, etc do nothing to stop these scams

[Carl]

The government, police, etc do nothing to stop these scams

They just like to listen...... 

[surfivor]

They just like to listen...... 

 No, it's like the powers that be are happy that all these crazy scams are going on. Don't we have all this surveillance capability yet they can't catch IRS scammers ? Even you or I could probably track them down and they are clearly breaking the law so why nothing has been done is pretty crazy

[Carl]

No, it's like the powers that be are happy that all these crazy scams are going on. Don't we have all this surveillance capability yet they can't catch IRS scammers ? Even you or I could probably track them down and they are clearly breaking the law so why nothing has been done is pretty crazy

It is not uncommon for LEO's to ignore illegal activity ,until and unless it is reported.
It also is outside the scope of their job to chase phone scams ,etc.
Just my opinion..

[endurance]

Why would you do such a dumb thing..

The only time I ever sent money to someone who wrote me a letter was because of an inheritance I was to receive, I didn't even know I was part Nigerian royalty.

It got them to stop asking for money, so it had to be legit, right?

[surfivor]

It is not uncommon for LEO's to ignore illegal activity ,until and unless it is reported.
It also is outside the scope of their job to chase phone scams ,etc.
Just my opinion..

if you made phone calls claiming to be a police officer it would be big trouble. No 1 at the federal or state levels has address this whatsoever. when it seems so rampant and blatant?

[IKN]

SCAM ALERT
I was recently looking at my credit card statement and saw a charge I didn’t recognize. After looking into it, it was a recurring charge of $12/month from ShoppersDiscount.com. Further research shows this to be an International scam from a company that piggy-backs other sites.
It appears by using certain discount codes or offers authorizes them to charge your credit/debit card on a monthly bases without telling or warning you. Small charge that doesn’t pop a red flag and easy to miss on a statement or write it off to something forgotten about.
When I contacted my credit card company and mentioned their name, they knew all about it, even had their contact number which apparently is almost useless. Starts with automated message asking about credit card info. DO NOT DO THIS. WAIT TO TALK TO A REAL PERSON !!!!
While I’m pissed about the scam, I’ve become more pissed at the credit card companies that, apparently know about this and have did NOTHING to stop it. Not even informing their customers.
So make sure you check your credit/debit card statements carefully.

Wasn't sure of best place to post this. Spread the word.

[nkawtg]

Thanks for the heads up.

[Carl]

That's the cheapest scam I have seen on todays market...I might want one too.   

[osubuckeye4]

Variations of this have been operating for awhile.

When my wife and I booked our honeymoon (this was close to 6 years ago) we used a discount code and ended up on some scam travel companies "discount subscription service".

They billed my card something like $5.99 or $6.99 monthly and I didn't pick up on it till the 3rd month.


I got the companies info and tried to call them to unsubscribe, and could never get through. I ultimately had to go to my bank and put a stop on the charges.

Important to take 2-3 minutes and look over every statement and make sure that you actually made each purchase.


As far as the credit card companies/banks not notifying their customers... it's because a lot of these scam companies actually have a (much smaller) legitimate wing/entity service that they also operate. If the bank notified every person who had a charge from the company, they would run the risk of accidently contacting people who made legitimate purchases as well.

[Sunshine]

Great, a new flavor of the month.  Seems like they come up with something new all the time.  Thanks for the heads up on this one.

[Carver]

A person I know of requested to be my Facebook friend, a very unlikely choice, but I okayed it. Next:
This is the message I received from a scam posing as a Facebook friend this morning (note the poor English): "l was wondering if you have heard anything about the community service Block Grant (CSBG) helping program? It is international finance cooperation. They are helping the Deaf, Retired, Disable, Widowed, Military, Employees, Unemployees to maintain a good standard of living. I got some cash from them and I saw your name when I was signing with the delivery agent, So I wanted to know if you have gotten yours too from them? I got $100,000.00 from them the on- going program when I apply, and it not a loan you don't have to pay it back I thought you've gotten yours from them. DO you know how to apply??" got my winning money delivered to me in my doorstep by the UPS after 4 hour l apply for the program and l saw your name on their winning list I thought you've gotten yours too from them"

It included a photo of an open grocery bag with 4 stacks about 6 inches tall of one dollar bills. The scammer was referring to Community Service Block Grant that has a page on fraud alerts and specifically says it does not provide grants to individuals. The person that this scammer was claiming to be lives a block away and so I responded by asking them what color their house was and never got a reply.
But I do like the term "unemployees".

[Mr. Bill]

MODERATOR NOTE: Just merged ten old threads about various financial scams.

[Mr. Bill]

"Who's Who" scams...

These are aimed at older folks who are a little bit famous, maybe just in their own field.

Marquis Who's Who is not a scam.  Well, not really.  They've been publishing the well-known "Who's Who" directories for ages, and have branched out into specialized directories and special honors.  Listings and honors are free.  But you might want to buy a copy of the book.  And you might want to pay for a press announcement.  And (etc etc etc).  But they're not a scam.

However, there are REAL scammers who are much less honest.  I'm not going to name names, because these guys are professional con-men, and they've been doing various scams for decades, and I don't want to get sued.

How it works:  They contact a person who has recently received some honor or award, e.g. from Marquis Who's Who.  They might not exactly claim to be associated with Marquis but they will probably give that impression.

They will tell the target person about yet another honor that he/she has been selected for.  And they won't make it entirely clear what, exactly, you're signing up for, but once they have a credit card number, there will be a charge for a quarter-page press release ($1500).  Or a half-page press release ($2000).  Or a radio interview ($2500).  Or quite possibly all three.

The "press release" (if ever published) will be on a blog that nobody reads.  The "radio interview" (if ever recorded) will be on a podcast that nobody listens to.  The claim that your info will be sent to all major search engines merely means that Google can index their blog/podcast.

Just something to watch for if you have elderly relatives who are a little bit famous and a little bit easy to trick.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who%27s_Who_scam

https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/info-10-2012/beware-the-whos-who-directory-scam.html

[Carver]

That reminds me of the modeling school scam. Our neighbor's fell for that one. They flatter dad & mom on what a beautiful model their daughter would be and sign them up for modeling school. Our neighbor's daughter is knock-kneed and trots like a duck and has a face that is less than ordinary. I suppose there are variations for little boys too, "your son would really be good at martial arts and we've got a school for that".

[Mr. Bill]

Here's a medical billing scam.  You get a call from "Consumer Collections" or some similarly-named outfit.  They say you had medical lab work done by US Diagnostic Labs on a specific date in March or April 2018, and they may have lots of believable details about the blood tests that were done.  Some of the tests weren't covered by your insurance, and you now owe a specific amount of money which will be between $300-$450.  And you have to pay today, over the phone, otherwise a judgement will be recorded against you (or some similar ominous thing).

They will be polite and helpful, or threatening and rude, depending on your reaction.

It's a scam.  They almost caught my parents today (and nearly tricked my brother, who happened to be the one who answered the phone).

They use many different phone numbers (in our case it was 909-358-6165), and several different generic-sounding names, and claim to be collecting for several different generic-sounding labs.

Here's an example with lots of reports of the same scam:
https://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-480-573-8225