If you hear any of these lines, your fraud alarm should start buzzing.

If you hear any of these lines, your fraud alarm should start buzzing.

Many scam artists employ time tested techniques. Here are common pitches to watch out for.

"Just wire the money" Wire transfer is the most common way con artists get cash from their victims, according to the National Consumers League. Unlike with credit cards, you have no way to stop payment or recover funds. So the perp is sure to get his money.More from Money Magazine

"Cash this check" Cons often win trust by sending you what looks like a real check. They may ask you to cash it and return all or a portion of it to them to cover fees or an overpayment. The check will invariably bounce, and you'll be on the hook for the money.

"I'm contacting you from [insert foreign country name here]" Anytime a stranger offers you an easy money proposition, be suspicious - but be especially so if the stranger is overseas. Scammers like to operate outside the U.S., where it's harder for authorities to prosecute them.

"You're guaranteed a 10% return every month" To get high returns, you have to take high risk. As a benchmark: The stock market's long-term return is 10% a year. Any deal that "guarantees" that or more is a scam.

"Don't tell anyone else about this opportunity" Con artists often discourage you from talking about an opportunity with anyone who could talk you out of it or who could really check it out.

"Only a few lucky investors can get in, so you must act right away" Scammers like to give the impression that the deal has a deadline, in hopes you'll hand over your money before doing any due diligence.

Resist the pressure. Get all the information before making a decision.

Rental Scammers

Rental scammers. How to aviod them

Today I wanna tell you a little bit about Rental Scamers & how to unmask them. First of all, how do they work?

This scam works just how it sounds. A scam artist rents a property so they can show it to other prospective renters. They’ll collect first and last month’s rent, security deposits and any fees or charges they can squeeze out of their victims before skipping town with the loot. There have been reports of a single property being leased or rented to dozens of people before the crook vanished with their money.

Now watch this video, it will help to unmask Rental Scamers and to avoid the deception!

If Ebay Was Truthful

If Ebay Was Truthful
What would these listings look like if by some magic everyone was forced into full disclosure and absolute honesty?

I doubt of course that it can happen one day, but still - another Internet fraudsters in their unique way... They do not lie to us, they just do not tell the truth....

So see, remember, and beware!!!

The Most Dangerous Health Scams

Today i decided to share with you some well-known aids that are not the ones they claim to be

So look, remember and beware

Ephedra

While marginally effective, this popular diet aid didn't result in nearly as much weight loss as its ads claimed, and it had the nasty side effect of raising blood pressure enough to cause strokes, heart problems and dizziness. This wasn't entirely unexpected, given that the active ingredient in ephedra is almost identical to synthetic ephedrine, which the FDA has carefully regulated for years.

Q-Ray Magnetic Bracelet

A magnetic bracelet marketed for relief of musculoskeletal pain, sciatica, headaches, tendinitis and injuries, the Q-Ray was reportedly ionized by a secret process that conferred pain-relieving abilities. The marketers, Que Te Park and Jung Joo Park, also offered a 30-day money-back guarantee that was frequently unavailable when customers requested a refund.

A panel of experts, including Richard Cleland, assistant director for the division of advertising practices at the Federal Trade Commission; Dr. Robert Baratz, MD, DDS, PhD, president of the National Council Against Health Fraud; and Andrea Giancoli, spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association, found these to be the most scientifically inaccurate, physically and fiscally damaging health scams over the past five years.

Other notable health scams have included false cures for AIDS, diabetes and cancer, offering treatments such as malariotherapy, ozone therapy, Cancell and the 7-Day Miracle Cleanse.

These sorts of nostrums, critics contend, are dangerous because they prey on people who are afraid and sick, convincing them to forgo traditional therapies like chemotherapy, sometimes for so long that their diseases progress and are no longer curable.

Such was the case in the mid-'90s with New Yorker Julianne Charell, a woman in her sixties who was so mired in controversial Dr. Nicholas Gonzalez's suspect cancer regimen--which included repeated coffee enemas and up to 150 vitamin pills a day--that she went blind before she realized her cancer had spread.

So... BEWARE, people!!! And tell me what do you think about this...

Charity Scams

The Set-Up

A charity presents you with a need.

The Hook

You respond generously, without checking the charity's or collector's credentials.

The Sting

There was no charity, your money is gone, and the people in need get nothing.

 You are presented with an opportunity to be generous, and you respond. Unfortunately the charity turns out to be fake or a scammer pretending to be a real charity. You lose your money.

Natural disasters are often the trigger for fake charity scams. Scammers were asking for money immediately after the 2004 tsunami.

Other charity scammers will play on your emotions by presenting you with images and stories about sick children or homeless animals.

Variations:

Charity Lottery Scams

Scammers can set up lotteries and sell tickets promoting the idea that the proceeds will be going to charity. If you check the terms and conditions of the lottery, though (which you should always do) you may discover that only a tiny fraction of the money raised goes to charity.

Stay Safe

If you are contacted by a charity you have never heard of before, do some research before saying 'yes' to any appeal.

If you are approached face-to-face by someone representing a charity, look for official identification. Even if they have ID, check for signs that the ID may be faked.

Do not be pressured or intimidated or made to feel guilty. Genuine charities would regard such tactics as bad for their reputations.

Ask for full details of the charity, such as name, address, phone number and charity registration details. If the collector is reluctant to give out this information, find another way to contribute.

Help Keep Others Safe

Safety Tips For Internet Dating and Chatting

Internet dating may have some dangerous twists and turns

Looking for Mr. or Mrs. Right? Looking for a good time? Or maybe you want to find "a truly honest and good man or woman" to talk to. Do not fear, your dream date is only a click away! But beware- he or she may not be who you think. From dream date to criminal, you never know in the wide world of Internet dating.

Thirty percent of date-site viewers are actually inmates in prison, according to www.policenotebook.com. Although these inmates do not necessarily have direct access to the Internet, they correspond weekly through another person outside of prison. Inmates looking for help, love, or fortune on the Internet usually make only a passing reference, or none at all, to their criminal records.

"Aren't you fed up with meeting all the wrong men," posted an inmate named Harold Gordon. "In search of a truly honest and good man who is also in search of a partner? Well, have you ever thought of corresponding and having a relationship with a prisoner?" This man seems more to be held captive by romance rather than a guarded facility. But, however "innocent" he seems, Gordon is serving a life sentence without parole for first-degree murder, second-degree murder, and sodomy with force and kidnapping.

While dangers from dating sites is not common, viewers should still consider that the person with whom they are talking with may not be anything like they describe. They may not be the gender they claim, and they may provide prospective partners with false names, occupations, ages, and addresses.

If you experience problems when chatting on the net, especially ones that involve threatening or offensive content, contact your service provider. But to avoid this drastic action, follow these safety tips before participating in an online chat:

1. Avoid giving out personal information.
2. Be cautious when agreeing to meet anyone in person whom you've met on the Internet. Find a way to identify your potential romantic partner before you allow a meeting. Bring a friend along just in case!
3. If you choose to arrange a meeting, make it on your terms. You should meet in a public place, arrange your own transportation to and from the meeting, consider a double date setting, and set your own conditions.
4. Also, stay in lighted areas throughout the entirety of the meeting.

The Internet is very much like a community; the majority of the population is composed of good people who do their best to obey the rules and behave responsibly; however, there are potential offenders mixed in with the general public. Take precautions on the Internet just as you would in everyday life, to ensure you have a safe and pleasant cyber-dating experience.

International Lottery Scam Information

Not so long ago i could find an article on the related topic, so now i just wanna share it with you if you do not mind.


Lottery scams are one of the most common types of fraudulent email currently hitting inboxes. Be wary of unsolicited email that informs you that you have won a large sum of money in an international lottery. This is a common Internet scam. There is no lottery and no prize. Those who initiate a dialogue with the scammers by replying to the lottery scam emails will eventually be asked for advanced fees to cover expenses associated with delivery of the supposed "winnings". They may also become the victims of identity theft.

How Lottery Scams Work

You receive an unsolicited email, which states that you have won a major prize in an international lottery. Supposedly, your email address was collected online and attached to a random number that was subsequently entered in a draw for the lottery. In order to claim your prize, you are instructed to contact the official "agent" in charge of your case. You are also advised to keep the win confidential for "security reasons". This part of the scam is basically a random phishing expedition. If you respond in any way to the email, the scammers will send further messages or even contact you by phone in an attempt to draw you deeper into the scam.

You may be asked to provide banking details, a large amount of personal information, and copies of your driver's licence and passport. Ostensibly, these requests are to prove your identity and facilitate the transfer of your winnings. However, if you comply with these requests, the scammers will have enough information to steal your identity.

Sooner or later, the scammers will request some sort of advance fee supposedly to cover administration, legal or delivery costs. At its core, this scam is just a reworking of the Nigerian loan fraud, in which scammers also eventually ask for upfront fees to facilitate the "deal". Like Nigerian scams, victims who do actually pay the requested fees will probably find that they receive continuing payment demands to cover "unexpected expenses". The requests for money will go on until the victim realizes what is happening or has no further money to send.

In some cases, the scammers give victims the option of opening an account at a particular bank as an alternative to paying upfront fees. However, this "bank" which is completely bogus, will insist on an initial deposit of $3000 as a requirement for opening the account. The fake bank will have a legitimate looking website to reinforce the scam. In other cases, the victim is given the option of travelling to an overseas destination and paying a cash fee to facilitate the release of the funds. However, any "winnings" released to the victim will be counterfeit and therefore worthless.

The details of the lottery scams vary regularly with regard to the name of the lottery itself, the country of origin, the sponsoring organization, the amount of the "prize" and other particulars. The scammers try to add a patina of legitimacy to their claims by mentioning real financial institutions, government departments or well-known companies. They may also provide links to slick looking, but fraudulent websites that are designed to back up information included in the scam emails. If the scammers are successful in establishing a dialogue with a potential victim, they may provide "proof" such as a scanned image of a supposed government official's ID and even photographs of the "winnings" in cash.

What To Do If You Receive a Lottery Scam Email

If you receive one of these scam emails, it is important that you do not respond to it in any way. The scammers are likely to act upon any response from those they see as potential victims. Although it can be educational and even entertaining to "bait" these scammers, such endeavours should only be attempted under controlled conditions. The people who run these scams are criminals and could even resort to violence and intimidation to meet their aims. You should delete the email without replying. Before you delete the message, you might like to report the scam by forwarding the email to the address supplied on the FraudWatch International website.

What To Do If You Have Submitted Information to Lottery Scammers

If you have supplied banking details, a large amount of personal information, and copies of your driver's licence and passport to the scammers, then you may become a victim of identity theft. For details on what to do, read the information about identity theft published by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

What To Do If You Have Already Given Money To Lottery Scammers


Unfortunately, there is probably very little you can do to recover any money you have already supplied. However, you should inform your local law enforcement agency as soon as possible. Also, take steps to protect your identity by accessing information about identity theft published by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC).


People, pls, beware, such a scum runs everywhere

Dining out scam. Beware!

This is very old dining out scam that's been operating for many years but still some eateries are falling for it.

Perfectly normal couple (it works best with couples but families have been known to be involved with this scam) take a table and order their meals and drinks. They appear very amiable and affable with their host and other customers. It works best if other customers are present.

When their meal is almost finished and drinks nearly gone, he calls the waitress over and indicates towards the meal. He points out that there is something moving in the meal. It's a tiny insect or two or maybe a spider.

He complains to the point where his partner ALSO finds something similar as she pokes about in the remains of her meal. The waitress may call over the chef or the proprietor but the man is insistent, the food is totally inedible, that the restaurant is lax with their hygiene and that he and his wife may have been poisoned. Other diners poke nervously in their food too.

The crux is that the couple are let off the bill and receive effusive apologies. They leave in black humour and with threatening disgust.

They go on to do this again and again in other eateries in other locations.


If you are involved in the restaurant or pub trade. Beware!