Welcome to the New Year, new frauds

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Welcome to the New Year! I imagine that like 2021, the new year will be filled with resolutions, i.e., government sponsored resolutions, new laws, or revisions to old laws with respect to frauds perpetrated by unscrupulous people. Yet, in spite of these new or revised laws, along with my warnings in this column, plus multiple warnings by organizations like the Better Business Bureau, the Federal Trade Commission, and others, the frauds, both old and new, will continue to proliferate across the board.

Certainly, there are a multitude of scammers who continue their fraudulent practices unafraid because they almost never get caught. I do believe there may be cases where the persons working for the fraudulent solicitors do not realize that what they are doing is illegal; that, or it is so lucrative that it is worth the minimal risk of being caught much less prosecuted and punished.

The international pervasiveness of the internet encourages frauds to be perpetrated from foreign countries that do not care that what the scammers are doing is unethical, if not illegal even in those countries, much less in the U.S. (remember, they are under no obligation to abide by the laws of our country).

Recently, a church treasurer I know almost got caught by a scammer. She received an email notice that the church’s annual internet fee was due for immediate renewal. It was a substantial amount and needed to be paid immediately or the church’s internet service would be cut off — according to the threat on the invoice. She was about to pay the bill when her daughter who was visiting recognized it as a fraud. However, this is just the type of situation the scammer is seeking. In this instance, the church has an email address that is paid for on an annual basis, so it seemed logical to the treasurer that she might have missed a payment or one was currently due. It is the same for various popular internet virus protection software, or even popular online retailer accounts. The scammer is hoping to evoke a familiar connection with their victims that makes their fraudulent attempt seem plausible.

Of course, the same old scams about which I have tried to warn my readers in the past year, continue unabated or have become even more prevalent as time marches on. As old scams wear out their welcome over time, new variants — just like flu or COVID variants — will surely emerge. So, here is my recommendation for a New Year’s Resolution: When the phone rings or a new email message arrives with:

• A plea for money for some “worthy” but heretofore unknown cause;

• An unexpected charge or invoice, even from someone with whom you may regularly do business, like Amazon, but is outside the realm of anything you were expecting;

• A call claiming to be from someone from your local utility company with an updated offer of a new or better service;

• A threatening message from some supposed government agency like the IRS or the Social Security Administration or Medicare, or…. Remember, government agencies do not call you unless they are returning your call!

Hang up or immediately delete the email. If you have any questions regarding such a supposed charge, contact that retailer or utility company via your normal contact/login procedure – initiated by you. Whatever you do, do not be taken in by the threat of an outrageous charge whereby you call the number on your computer screen or call back the number provided by the phone caller; do not click on a response hotlink provided in the email; do not click a button on your phone “if you did not make this charge.” Hang up as soon as you hear the unknown, usually automated, caller.

But do not be afraid to hang up on even unknown real callers, whether threatening, or nice with an offer too good to refuse, i.e., free stuff.

Ultimately, you must be your own protector! So be safe and have a Happy New Year!

By Don Shrader

Guest columnist

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