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Con artists are becoming bolder and more sophisticated in their attempts to steal your hard earned money.
They now pose as employees of government agencies and use phone numbers that appear to be coming from a legitimate source, like Washington, DC or even your own area code
Some claim to be with "the national consumer protection agency," the non-existent National Sweepstakes Bureau, and even the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
As with most cons, they use some grandeur to entice the person to send them money. They claim that you have won a hefty sweepstakes and just need you to send a "small" sum of money to cover the fees, taxes or service charges of your winnings. As soon as you send that money, you winnings will be sent. But as you know it never shows up.
These scammers also may try and convince consumers to wire money to a foreign country using a commercial money transfer company like Western Union. They may also suggest that you wire it to a famous establishment like "Lloyd's of London" or some other well-known insurance company. But as you know, these famous places are not actually involved and the money simply disappears into the pockets of the con artists.
According to the real Federal Trade Commission, the U.S. government's chief consumer protection agency, consumers can keep from falling for the lure of the sweepstakes scam by taking a few precautions. For example, the FTC says:
Don't pay to collect sweepstakes winnings. If you have to pay to collect your winnings, you haven't won anything. Legitimate sweepstakes don't require you to pay "insurance," "taxes" or "shipping and handling charges" to collect your prize.
Hold on to your money. Scammers pressure people to wire money through commercial money transfer companies like Western Union because wiring money is the same as sending cash. If you discover you've been scammed, the money's gone, and there's very little chance of recovery. Likewise, resist any push to send a check or money order by overnight delivery or courier. Con artists recommend these services so they can get to your money before you realize you've been cheated.
Look-alikes aren't the real thing. It's illegal for any promoter to lie about an affiliation with - or an endorsement by - a government agency or any other well-known organization. Con artists sometimes use a variation of an official or nationally recognized name to try to confuse you and give you confidence in their offers. Insurance companies, including Lloyd's, do not insure delivery of sweepstakes winnings.
Phone numbers can deceive. Some con artists use Internet technology to call you. It allows them to disguise their area code: although it may look like they're calling from Washington, DC or your local area, they could be calling from anywhere in the world.
Take control of the calls you receive. If you want to reduce the number of telemarketing calls you receive, place your telephone number on the National Do Not Call Registry. To register online, visit www.donotcall.gov.
File a complaint with the FTC. If your number has been on the National Do Not Call registry for at least 31 days, and a telemarketer calls, file a complaint with the FTC. To file a complaint online, visit www.donotcall.gov
If you receive a call from someone claiming to be a representative of the government trying to arrange for you to collect supposed sweepstakes winnings, file a complaint at ftc.gov. It's most helpful to enforcement officials if your complaints include the date and time of the call and the name or phone number of the organization that called you. Although scammers may call using a telephone number that disguises their location, law enforcers may be able to track that number to identify the caller.
By being knowledgeable of the techniques of con artists you can save yourself, your family and your friends a great financial loss. Just remember these few things and don't act too hastily or excited if someone calls you stating you won a huge sum of money. Remember "if it sounds too good to be true" it is probably no.
Bill has been writing articles for over 5 years. Come visit his latest website over at www.biometricgunsafereviews.com which helps people find a fingerprint gun safe and which is the best for keeping guns stored safely away.
Disclaimer: All information on this site is provided for informational purposes only! By no means is any
information presented herein intended to substitute for the advice provided to you by any health care or other professional
or organization.
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