Memorial Day is often considered to mark the unofficial start of summer and many of us are looking forward to our summer vacations.  Scammers, however, it seem don’t take much time off and summer vacation time brings a new batch of scams.  Recently a local Bed and Breakfasts on Block Island, New York was the victim of a scam that is being repeated around the country and about which you should be aware.  The scam involved a phony ad on Craigslist.  The advertisement merely copied photographs and text from the real B and B’s website and put up the phony ad on Craigslist.

TIP

Merely because you see an ad on a legitimate website, such as Craigslist, does not mean that the advertisement is legitimate.  No vacation website is able to confirm the truthfulness of all of the people who list on the websites.  Before you send any money, make sure that you are sending funds to the real vacation home or hotel owners.  Always be wary of people who ask you to wire the money which is  typical way scammers obtain their funds.  Confirm the legitimacy of the advertisement with some investigation of your own including calling a telephone number for the home or hotel that you know is correct.