Scam Alerts for 2014

Every year, crooks from around the world go out of their way to try to find new ways to cheat people out of their hard-earned money.  The type of people who initiate these scams can range from local small-town contractors to international terrorist groups.  These people can also try to cheat us in a multitude of ways.  They may make a personal appeal, use a robo-call phone system, or go on a computer phishing expedition.  They might put a virus on your computer.

However they attempt to cheat us, we want to be prepared and know about the variety of tricks they may choose to use.  Here are some of the scams you need to watch out for in 2014:

Scam Alerts

*  If you used a credit or debit card in a Target Store anywhere in the United States in late November or the first half of December, 2013, you need to watch your statements carefully.  A foreign group was able to steal 40,000,000 credit card numbers.  It is possible that some PIN numbers were also captured.  Many of the cards are already for sale on international websites. To avoid problems, you may want to change your PIN number and/or ask that your card be replaced.  In addition, you should watch your statements carefully to avoid fraudulent charges.  If you are especially concerned, you may also want to enroll in a credit monitoring service to make sure your account information is not used to open new accounts.

*  According to the Federal Trade Commission, more people are defrauded by people promoting weight loss products than any other product category.  Talk to your doctor and read independent reviews before trying any miracle drug or supplement that claims it will help you lose weight easily and quickly.

*  Illegal or incompetent contractors often try to take advantage of people after a major weather event, such as an ice storm, hurricane, tornado or floods.  They may simply show up at your door and claim that your homeowner's association sent them, or that they were working on other homes in the neighborhood and noticed that your home needed work, too.  They may ask for large deposits, but do little or no work before they disappear.  Ask for referrals before hiring any contractor and verify, verify, verify.

*  Watch out for phony subscription invoices in your email or mailbox.  If someone other than the publisher contacts you about renewing a subscription, contact the publisher to make sure it is legitimate.

As always, be skeptical of any unexpected contact by a stranger ... whether that contact is in person, through a phone call or an email.  Scammers use a wide variety of ways to trick you, and you do not want to be their next victim.

In addition, you may want to follow a website such as this one in order to stay up-to-date on new scams that are going around.  An educated consumer is much less like to be tricked!

You are reading from the blog:  http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com

Photo of damaged home is courtesy of www.morguefile.com