Scam of the Day
Scam of the day – April 2, 2025 – Watch Out For Scammers Posing as Turbo Tax
With the due date for filing you federal income tax return rapidly approaching, many people are filing their taxes at this time with almost 94% of individual income tax returns being filed electronically. TurboTax is a popular online tax preparation service and so identity thieves will take advantage of that popularity and call people posing as TurboTax employees informing the targeted victim that his or her electronically filed income tax return has been rejected by the IRS. The identity thief then attempts to lure you into providing personal information including your Social Security number that will be used to make you a victim of identity theft.
In order to make their call appear legitimate, the identity thieves will use a technique called “spoofing” to manipulate your Caller ID so that the call looks like it has come from TurboTax.
TIPS
As I often say, trust me, you can’t trust anyone, particularly someone who asking for you to provide sensitive personal information. In this case it is important to note that TurboTax will not call you if your tax return has been rejected unless you have specifically requested a call. If you do receive such a call and think that it might be legitimate, merely hang up and call TurboTax at its customer service number of 1-800-446-8848..
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Scam of the day – April 1, 2025 – FTC Sending Refunds to Victims of Beauty Products Scam
In 2016 the FTC settled a lawsuit it brought against NutraClick LLC a company that lured consumers with “free” samples of health and beauty products and then charged them a recurring monthly fee without their consent. In 2020, the FTC sued NutraClick again for misleading consumers when they tried to cancel their “free” trial memberships to avoid monthly charges. In 2023 I informed you that the FTC was returning $973,000 to 17,064 people who were victimized by NutraClick. The funds for the refund were obtained from payments made by NutraClick pursuant to its settlement agreements with the FTC. The FTC is now sending additional payments to people who were charged for unwanted memberships, but did not get a refund in 2023.
TIPS
For more information about this refund program go to the tab in the middle of the Scamicide home page entitled “FTC Scam Refunds.” It is important to note that there is never a charge for obtaining a refund through the FTC or any of its refund administrators. Anyone who asks for such a payment is just another scammer.
As for health care products in general, the truth is that there are no quick fixes when it comes to remedying a wide variety of health issues and you should be wary of any product that promises to do so. You should also be wary of any health care product that is sold exclusively either over the Internet or through mail-order advertisements. The best course of action is to ask your physician about the effectiveness of a particular product or program before you consider buying it.
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Scam of the day – March 31, 2025 – Puppy Scams
Scams involving sales of non-existent puppies have increased dramatically in the last few years. People buy dogs or other pets online and, although they think they are taking proper precautions, they often end up getting nothing in return for the money that they wire to the scammer who may have a website or some other way of marketing their non-existent pets with photographs and false information.
Often the scammers hook their victims for more and more money, such as when even after the victims has paid for the non-existent dog, the victim is asked for additional payments for a special crate to transport the dog along with additional transportation company fees.
TIPS
It is simple for a scammer to construct a website that appears to be legitimate and scammers can readily steal the name of a legitimate animal breeder. Always check into the reputation of the breeder with your state’s attorney general. You can also Google the name of the breeder with the word “scam” to see if a legitimate breeder’s name that is being used has been stolen for scams previously. Another good source for determining if a puppy website is legitimate is https://petscams.com/ which keeps an updated list of phony puppy sale websites.
Be wary of anyone who asks you to wire money because that is a telltale sign that a scam is going on because once the money is wired, it is impossible to get it back. If you are told that a courier company is being used to transport the animal, check out the company to make sure it is legitimate and actually shipping the dog.
There also are a number of ways such as using the website http://www.tineye.com to search the photos sent to you of the dog to see if they appear elsewhere other than the website attempting to sell you a puppy. If so, this is a good indication that you are being scammed. Also, always get a veterinarian report on any animal before you consider buying it. Finally, you are always going to be better off buying a pet that you can see in person prior to buying the pet.
Some phony breeders claim they are certified by the American Kennel Club (AKC) however, the AKC doesn’t certify breeders. Legitimate breeders will however, register their litters with the AKC and you can find out by calling the AKC’s customer service line 919-233-9767 if a particular litter has been registered.
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Scam of the day – March 30, 2025 – 23andMe Bankruptcy Leaves Customers Vulnerable to Identity Theft and Scams
- Consumers can delete their account and personal information by taking the following steps:
- Log into your 23andMe account on their website.
- Go to the “Settings” section of your profile.
- Scroll to a section labeled “23andMe Data” at the bottom of the page.
- Click “View” next to “23andMe Data”
- Download your data: If you want a copy of your genetic data for personal storage, choose the option to download it to your device before proceeding.
- Scroll to the “Delete Data” section.
- Click “Permanently Delete Data.”
- Confirm your request: You’ll receive an email from 23andMe; follow the link in the email to confirm your deletion request.
Scam of the day – March 29, 2025 – Another Celebrity Romance Scam
Romance scams where scammers convince people that they are in love with them and once they have gained their trust and an emotional connection ask under a variety of pretenses for money has only gotten worse with AI being able to be used for scammers to appear as anyone they wish in videos or change their voice through AI voice cloning to appear legitimate. I also have written many times about scammers posing as celebrities to scam people out of their money and this type of scam too has gotten worse with AI. Now we have a scam that combines both of these scams in the recent case of a 34 year old Texas woman who received an AI video message that appeared to come from country singer Morgan Wallen that started an online romance culminating with the woman being asked to send the scammer $18,000 worth of gift cards.
Last year a scam group called the “Yahoo Boys” based in Nigeria began using artificial intelligence to change their facial features in Zoom videos to appear to be the person they are posing as in the romance scam. They also can use AI to change their voice and accent to sound legitimate and while doing a video conference with a romance scammer in the past was a good way to see if the person was actually who they claimed to be, now scammers using this technology will be very difficult to recognize as scammers.
TIPS
There are various red flags to help you identify romance scams. I describe many of them in detail in my book “The Truth About Avoiding Scams.” The most important thing to remember is to always be skeptical of anyone who falls in love with you quickly online without ever meeting you and early into the relationship who then asks you to send money to assist them with a wide range of phony emergencies.
Here are a few other things to look for to help identify an online romance scam. Often their profile picture is stolen from a modeling website on the Internet. If the picture looks too professional and the person looks too much like a model, you should be wary. You also can check on the legitimacy of photographs or video images by seeing if they have been used elsewhere by doing a reverse image search using google.images.com or websites such as tineye.com.
Recently, the dating sites Match, Tinder, Hinge and Plenty of Fish started a new public awareness program to help people recognize romance scams. One tip they give is to use the verification check on your matches to help confirm they are the person who appears in the profile photo.
As for celebrity based romance scam, it is important to recognize that celebrities aren’t reaching out online to people they have never met to start romantic relationships.
Finally, anytime you are asked to send large amounts of gift cards it is a scam. Scammers love gift cards because they are impossible to trace back to the scammer.
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Scam of the day – March 28, 2025 – Publishers Clearing House Scams Increasing
In the last few years there has been an increase in reports of scammers calling people on the telephone and telling them that they have won one of the Publishers Clearing House lotteries, but that they have to pay fees or taxes before being able to claim their prize. In addition there are reports of targeted victims receiving phony notifications by regular mail that they have won a Publishers Clearing House lottery, but that again they must pay fees or taxes before being able to receive their prize.
It is hard to win any lottery. It is impossible to win one that you have not even entered and yet scam artists have found that it is extremely lucrative to scam people by convincing them that they have won various lotteries. With so many people entered into the Publishers Clearing House lotteries, it is easier for scammers to convince people that they have won. Earlier this year Manny Guerrero of Las Vegas lost $180,000 to scammers posing as Publishers Clear House who called him on the telephone and convinced him that he had won a multi-million dollar prize, but that he needed to pay $180,000 to the scammers for tax owed on the winnings before he could claim his prize.
Most lottery scams involve the victim being told that they need to pay taxes or administrative fees directly to the lottery sponsor; however no legitimate lottery requires you to do so.
As with many effective scams, the pitch of the scammer may seem legitimate. Income taxes are due on lottery winnings, but with legitimate lotteries they are either deducted from the lottery winnings before you receive your prize or you are responsible for paying the taxes directly to the IRS. No legitimate lottery collects taxes on behalf of the IRS from lottery winners. Other times, the scammer tell the “winners” that in order to collect their prizes, they need to pay administrative fees. Often, the victims are told to send the fees back to the scammer by gift cards. Gift cards are a favorite of scammers because they are the equivalent of sending cash. They are impossible to stop or trace. Again, no legitimate lottery requires you to pay administrative fees in order to claim your prize.
TIPS
Fortunately, there is an easy way to know, when you are contacted by Publishers Clearing House by phone, email or text message informing you that you have won one of its major multi-million dollar prizes, whether you have been contacted by the real Publishers Clearing House. Publishers Clearing House only contacts major prize winners in person or by regular mail. They do not contact winners by phone, email or text message so if you do receive a notification of your winning one of their major multi-million dollar prizes by those means of communication you know it is a scam.
Even if the Caller ID on your phone indicates the call is from Publishers Clearing House, it is very easy for a scammer to use a technique called “spoofing” to make it appear that the call is coming from Publishers Clearing House rather than the scammer who is really making the call. Trust me, you can’t trust anyone.
In addition, no winners of the Publishers Clearinghouse sweepstakes are ever required to make a payment of any kind to claim their prize so if you are told that you have won, but are required to make any kind of payment before you can claim your prize, you can be sure that it is a scam. As for other lotteries, remember, you can’t win a lottery you haven’t entered and no legitimate lottery asks you to pay them administrative fees or taxes.
Also, as I often tell you, it is always a red flag that you are involved with a scam when you are asked to pay for anything with gift cards. Gift cards are a favorite method of payment for scammers because they are easy to convert into cash and impossible to trace.
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Scam of the day – March 27, 2025 – Interpol Arrests 306 Scammers in Cybercrime Crackdown
Interpol, the International Criminal Police Organization acts to get police forces in different countries to work together to fight transnational crime. After an Interpol coordinated operation known as Operation Red Card combining the forces of seven African countries, Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Nigerian, Rwanda, South Africa, Togo and Zambia conducted between November 2024 and February 2025, 306 people were arrested on charges related to a variety of cybercrimes. The initial investigation was also supported by a number of private cybersecurity companies including Kaspersky and Trend Micro. Some of the scams of which those arrested are accused of perpetrating included scams in which victims were lured into downloading malware on their phones that gave the scammers control over their banking apps and family emergency and grandparent scams, The cooperation and coordination of the various law enforcement agencies is a very positive development in the battle against scammers.
TIPS
While this is a tremendous development, the best place to look for a helping hand is still at the end of your own arm. Many of the scams that the scammers are accused of started with luring people into clicking on malware infected links. Along with utilizing security software and installing security patches and updates as soon as they are available, the best thing you can do to protect yourself is to never click on any link or provide personal information in response to an email or text message unless you have absolutely confirmed that it is true.
In regard to the family emergency or grandparent scam, this scam has gotten much worse due to scammers using AI to clone the voices of family members to make the scammers pleas seem legitimate. The best thing you can do to protect yourself and your family from this type of scam is to have a code word known only to family members to use in the event of actual family members.
Finally, it is important to remember that whenever you get a phone call, email or text message, you can never be sure who is actually contacting you. Trust me, you can’t trust anyone, so never respond to any such communication even if it appears to come from a trusted sources such as a governmental agency such as the IRS or a company with which you do business such as Netflix, until you have confirmed that it is legitimate.
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Scam of the day – March 26, 2025 – FTC Sending Refunds to Victims of Real Estate Investment Scam
In the Scam of the day for April 27, 2024 I first told you that following the settlement of a lawsuit, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) was sending 10 million dollars in refunds to victims of a phony real estate investment scam perpetrated by Response Marketing Group LLC along with Scott Yancey and Dean R. Graziosi who promoted the scheme. Response Marketing Group used social media and infomercials to promote three day workshops at a cost of $1,000 that purported to teach people how to make large amounts of money flipping houses. At these workshops, Response Marketing Group also would pressure attendees to pay an additional $30,000 for a real estate investment coaching program. The scam was also promoted by Scott Yancey who formerly was featured on an A&E television show “Flipping Vegas” and Dean R. Graziosi who writes self-help books and has a YouTube channel with 170,000 subscribers. The entire program was based on false and misleading claims with attendees losing money rather than making the promised large profits.
The FTC first sent payments in March 2024, which resulted in more than $8.2 million in refunds. Because the FTC collected additional funds, they are now sending 3,955 payments totaling more than $8.3 million to people who accepted their first payment or filed a valid claim before the deadline.
TIPS
TIPS
Before hiring the services of a business coach, you may want to find out what helpful advice you can get for free through government agencies such as the Small Business Administration. http://www.sba.gov/starting-managing-business
As for flipping houses, here is a link to a Bankrate.com story about the pros and cons of house flipping.https://www.bankrate.com/real-estate/flipping-houses/
If you do decide to hire a business coach, you should find out if there are any complaints filed against him or her. An easy way to do this is to just do a search engine search in which you look up the person’s name with the words “scam” or “complaint” and see what comes up. Also, be wary of buying any program merely because a celebrity endorses it.
If you were a victim of this scam and have not been notified by the FTC in regard to getting a refund, go to the ‘FTC Scam Refunds” section on the first page of Scamicide.com for more information.
If you are not a subscriber to Scamicide.com and would like to receive daily emails with the Scam of the day, all you need to do is sign up for free using this link. https://scamicide.com/scam-of-the-day/
Scam of the day – March 25, 2025 – Hotel Room Service Scam
Some scams are just so simple and effective that they remind us why scam artists are indeed the only criminals we refer to as artists. An old scam that is still being used effectively by scammers involves a flyer under your door in your hotel or motel room that purportedly is an advertisement for a local pizza parlor or, in a case last year of one family that lost $6,000 taken from their debit card, a phony room service menu slid under the door. The flyer gives a telephone number for the pizza parlor which conveniently delivers to your room or, again in this particular case the phone number for the hotel’s room service.
All you need to do is call the number, give them a credit card and they will promptly send you your fresh pizza or other food. Unfortunately, it is a scam. There is no pizza parlor and this is not the real room service telephone number The scammers have merely gone through the hotel and put their flyers under the doors. They then just wait for the telephone calls, steal your credit card number and use it to make charges to your card.
TIPS
A good rule to follow is not to order any food from a restaurant that puts flyers under the door of your hotel or motel room and don’t trust a room service menu that has been slid under your door. In regard to the pizza parlor or other restaurant you can confirm online or even with a quick call to the clerk at the front desk as to whether the particular restaurant described in the flyer is legitimate and whether indeed the telephone number is their actual number. Sometimes the scammers will use the name of a real restaurant, but substitute their phony telephone number. Never order or provide your credit card unless you have independently confirmed both that the restaurant is real and the telephone number is accurate.
As for room service, you can easily access them through the appropriate button on the room landline or through the number indicated in the booklet found in the room containing information about the hotel.
Finally, as I have often warned you, the protection you get from fraud when using your debit card is far less than what you get when using your credit card so you should never use your debit card for anything other than an ATM card.
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Scam of the day – March 24, 2025 – T-Mobile Data Breach Settlement Update
In August of 2021 I reported to you about a data breach at T-Mobile initially discovered when hackers started offering for sale on the Dark Web data of what they said was 100 million customers of phone carrier T-Mobile for sale. T- Mobile confirmed the data breach but said that the number of people affected was approximately 76 million people. The information being sold included names, phone numbers, Social Security numbers and addresses. Also being sold were the PINS used by some T-Mobile customers to protect their accounts from identity theft that now are in the hands of hackers. This type of information poses a tremendous threat to victims of the data breach, which is the sixth for T-Mobile in the last four years. Social Security numbers in particular can be used by identity thieves to apply for credit cards and loans in your name. In addition, the phone numbers and the fact that the victims of the data breach are known to be T-Mobile customers enables the hackers to create phony phishing text messages, called smishing, posing as T-Mobile and luring the targeted victim into clicking on a link in the text message that can download destructive malware.
A class action on behalf of victims of the data breach was settled, following which, T-Mobile sent notices to affected customers. If you believe you may have been affected and did not receive such a notice, you can call the settlement administrator at 1-833-512-2314 or go to the official settlement website
Affected customers can make claims for the cost of out-of-pocket expenses incurred due to the breach. In addition, there is a small cash payment to everyone affected and T-Mobile is also offering free credit monitoring services for two years.
TIPS
So what do you do if you are a T-Mobile customer who may be affected by this latest data breach. Perhaps the first thing you should do is something you should have already done, but as the Chinese proverb says, “the best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago, the second best time is now.” Freeze your credit at each of the three major credit reporting bureaus.
https://www.transunion.com/credit-freeze/place-credit-freeze
https://www.experian.com/freeze/center.html
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