Scam of the Day
Scam of the day – September 30, 2023 – FTC Sending Another Round of Payments to Lifelock Customers
In 2015 the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) settled a lawsuit it initiated against identity theft protection company, Lifelock about which I reported to you in a Scam of the day earlier that year. In the lawsuit, Lifelock was accused of not living up to the terms of an earlier 2010 settlement with the FTC as well as 35 state attorneys general regarding charges that Lifelock used misleading and deceptive advertising as well as failed to adequately protect the security of the personal data of its customers including Social Security numbers and credit card numbers. According to the FTC, Lifelock violated the 2010 settlement by failing to maintain a comprehensive information security program to protect its users’ sensitive personal data, including credit card numbers, Social Security numbers and bank account numbers as well as by falsely advertising that it protected consumers’ sensitive data with the same high-level safeguards as financial institutions.
At the time of the settlement FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez said, “The fact that consumers paid Lifelock for help in protecting their sensitive personal information makes the charges in this case particularly troubling.” This fine represents the largest fine ever collected by the FTC for the failure to live up to a previous agreement with the FTC. The funds collected from Lifelock were returned to eligible Lifelock customers in 2019, 2021 and in January of this year. Those distributions totaled more than 28.5 million dollars, however because there is still additional money available from the fine paid by Lifelock, the FTC is sending 2.3 million dollars of additional payments to 159,146 people who had previously received a payment. The payments will be sent by PayPal. For more information go to the middle of the opening page of Scamicide.com to the tab “FTC Refunds.”
TIPS
The charges of failing to protect customers’ personal information is very disturbing to Lifelock customers because any company holding such tremendous amounts of personal information would be a prime target of hackers and identity thieves. It is also important to remember that neither Lifelock nor any of the other identity theft protection services are able to truly protect you from identity theft. They merely help you take certain steps to reduce your chances of becoming a victim of identity theft and help you monitor your accounts to let you know sooner if you become a victim of identity theft.
In fact, none of the identity theft protection services assist you in putting a credit freeze on your credit report which may be the single best step you can take to protect yourself from identity theft. You can find instructions for putting a credit freeze on your credit reports here on Scamicide by putting the words “credit freeze” into the “Search this Website” section of the first page of Scamicide.com.
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Scam of the day – September 29, 2023 – FBI Warns About Wrong Number Text Scam
The FBI recently issued a warning about the wrong number text message scam. The scam starts when you receive a text message that was obviously intended for someone else. Wanting to be a responsible person, many people respond to the text message telling the sender that it had been sent to the wrong number. At this point, the scammer sending the original text message says that he is always looking for more friends and attempts to start a conversation.
According to the FBI’s press release, “The scammers behind the wrong number text messages are counting on you to continue the conversation. They want to exploit your friendliness. Once they’ve made a connection, they’ll work to become friends or even cultivate a remote romantic relationship. It’s all a ruse, designed to get you to relax your mistrust so you’ll be more susceptible to falling for their scam, such as a cryptocurrency investment or many others targeting victims.”
Often these phony text messages aren’t even coming from a real person, but are automated responses sent by a bot programmed to give specific responses. The scams involved with these calls are many, but they all start with establishing a relationship with the targeted victim such that the victim begins to trust the scammer. At this point, the scammer may ask for personal information that can be used to make you a victim of identity theft. In other instances, they will lure you into clicking on a malware infected link under some pretense. In yet another version of the scam, they will use the text message to advance a romance scam and either eventually ask for money or for you to send compromising photos that would be used for blackmail purposes. Finally, these phony text messages have also been used to lure people into cryptocurrency scams. The bottom line is that when you get a text message that appears to be intended for someone else, it often is a scam.
TIPS
This is an easy scam to avoid. The best thing to do is to merely not respond at all to the text message. The risk of getting involved in a scam is too great. You also should block the number from your phone. If your mobile service provider is AT&T, Verizon Wireless or T-Mobile you should forward the message to SPAM (7726) and report it as spam.
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Scam of the day – September 28, 2023 – Student Loan Forgiveness for University of Phoenix Students
For profit universities have been a target of state and federal investigations for years. I have written about this topic since 2012. It should be noted that not all for profit colleges are scams, but there are a large number of for profit colleges, sometimes referred to as “diploma mills” that at times offer credit for your “life experience” and lure students in with promises of a helpful degree, but the students end up with a worthless degree and an empty wallet. Sometimes the names of these scamming colleges and universities are confusingly similar to legitimate colleges. For instance, Columbia State University is a diploma mill while Columbia University is an eminent Ivy League school.
In 2019, the University of Phoenix settled charges brought by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that it used deceptive advertising to attract students. These ads falsely implied that the University of Phoenix worked with companies such as AT&T, Yahoo and Microsoft to create job opportunities for students and to shape its programs for the jobs. Pursuant to the settlement, the University of Phoenix paid 50 million dollars to the FTC and in 2021 the FTC sent refunds to 147,500 former University of Phoenix students.
Now as a further part of the FTC’s action against the University of Phoenix, the U.S. Department of Education is forgiving approximately 37 million dollars of federal student loans to victims of the school’s deceptive practices outlined in the 2019 case. People interested in submitting a claim for loan forgiveness should to to the Department of Education’s Borrower Defense Loan Discharge page using this link https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/borrower-defense
TIP
If you are considering attending a for profit school, first check it out with the United States Department of Education’s website at www.ope.ed.gov/accreditation to make sure it is an accredited institution.
You also should investigate whether a local college, university or community college would be more cost effective for you. For profit colleges and universities are often more expensive than these other alternatives without offering any distinct advantages. Also, check out the graduation rates of any for profit college you are considering and finally, investigate the job prospects in your field of study. Don’t just take the word of the college.
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Scam of the day – September 27, 2023 – New AI Social Security Scam
I have been warning you about scams related to Social Security benefits for many years. In one Social Security related scam, the scammers call their targeted victim on the phone posing as employees of the Social Security Administration and tell their intended victims that their Social Security numbers have been suspended due to the number being used by criminals for fraudulent purposes. They then ask you to confirm personal information including your Social Security number in order to correct the problem and to enable lifting of the suspension of the victims’ Social Security numbers as well as to avoid arrest. This is a scam intended to lure people into providing personal information including their Social Security number which will then be used for purposes of identity theft.
First and foremost, it is important to know that Social Security numbers are never suspended so right away you can be sure that a call informing you that your Social Security number has been suspended is a scam. The calls, however, can be very convincing and by using a technique called “spoofing” the call can manipulate your Caller ID into making it appear as if the call is coming from the Social Security Administration. Additionally, the Social Security Administration will not call you by phone if there is a problem with your Social Security. they will initiate contact by old fashioned snail mail.
Now, however the Office of the Inspector General for Social Security is warning about a new scam where Social Security customer service representatives receive AI powered chatbot calls that appear to come from a Social Security beneficiary asking for a change in the bank account where the monthly check is deposited.
TIPS
The Social Security Administration (SSA) has a tremendously helpful online service called My Social Security Account which allows you to set up a personal online account with the SSA that enables you to view your earnings history and estimates of benefits as well as manage your benefits online including changing your address or starting or changing direct electronic deposits of your check into a bank account you may designate. This is a tremendously convenient service, but it also provides a great opportunity for scammers who have been setting up My Social Security Accounts on behalf of seniors who have not already set up such accounts for themselves. The scammers then make changes to the victim’s account by directing their benefits checks to be sent to bank accounts controlled by the scammers. Even though the Social Security Administration requires verification of personal information by asking questions that only the Social Security recipient should know as part of the process for opening a My Social Security Account, too often this information is available to a determined identity thief who is thereby able to fraudulently open an account in the name of their intended victim.
In order to improve the security of the accounts, the SSA is now requiring people to use dual factor authentication to access their accounts once they have been set up. At the user’s option, the dual factor authentication is done by the SSA sending a one time code either to the user’s email or cell phone. Using an email address for dual factor authentication may prove to be problematic because it is not particularly difficult for a sophisticated hacker to gain access to someone’s email account.
Just as the best defense against income tax identity theft is to file your income tax return before an identity thief attempts does so in your name, so the best defense against the fraudulent setting up of a My Social Security Account in your name is for you to set one up first and protect its safety with a strong username and password. For information about signing up for a My Social Security Account go to https://ssa.gov/myaccount/
A My Social Security Account can also prevent a scammer from using AI to impersonate you and have your check diverted to the scammers bank account by indicating on your My Social Security Account that any changes to the bank account into which your check is electronically deposited only be done in person at a Social Security branch office and not on your online account or over the phone.
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Scam of the day – September 26, 2023 – New Apple Security Updates
It is always important to update all of the software you use with the latest security updates and patches as soon as they are available. Numerous hacks and data breaches could have been avoided if individuals as well as companies installed security updates as soon as they became available. Hackers take advantage of the fact that many of us procrastinate installing security software to our great detriment. The major data breach at Equifax in 2018 that affected 148 million people involved a security flaw in Apache software for which a patch had already been issued months earlier, but Equifax had not yet installed at the time of the data breach.
Recently Adobe issued multiple security updates which you should download as soon as possible.
TIPS
Here is a link to the Adobe updates: https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/alerts/2023/09/22/apple-releases-security-updates-multiple-products
Apple also provides the option of you being able to install the latest security updates automatically whenever they are issued. In order to enable automatic iOS updates open the “Settings” app and tap “General.” Then tap “Software Update” and then go to “Automatic Updates.” Enable the switch next to “Download iOS Updates” which will take you to the switch for installing iOS Updates which you can then enable. Once you do this, you will see a confirmation message confirming that your device will now automatically install iOS software updates when they become available.
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Scam of the day – September 25, 2023 – Senator Blumenthal Spearheading Efforts Against phony PACs and Charities
Election season will soon be coming to a close and Political Action Committees (PACs) are busy raising money to funnel to candidates and organizations trying to influence legislation. Unfortunately, for the last ten years scammers have been setting up phony PACs that promise to use your money on behalf of your favored candidate or cause, but instead keep the money for their own use. Often the scammers use telemarketing to contact their victims.
One of the more notorious PAC scammers is Harold Taub who set up two phony PACs to appeal to both Republican and Democratic donors, but kept never registered the PACs with the the Federal Election Commission (FEC) as required by law and kept the money he received from donors for himself. Taub was convicted of wire fraud and of violating the Federal Election Campaign Act and was sentenced to three years in prison and order to pay back more than 1.1 million dollars to the victims of his crime.
In addition, phony charities are also using telemarketing to reach people to contribute to their scams.
It is important to note that even if you are on the federal Do Not Call List, you can be contacted by legitimate PACs and legitimate charities, but unfortunately, you can’t tell when you are contacted by a telemarketer whether or not the call is legitimate or not. Using a technique called “spoofing” a scammer can manipulate your Caller ID to make their calls appear to come from a legitimate PAC or charity.
Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal is spearheading efforts in Congress along with the Federal Election Commission and the Federal Trade Commission to crack down on these scams
TIPS
Legitimate PACs are required to file with the Federal Election Commission so before giving to any PAC you should check with the FEC to determine if the PAC has filed the necessary documents. If it isn’t registered it is a scam. Unfortunately, even if you find the PAC soliciting your donation is registered, scammers have registered phony PACs and falsify the financial documentation of their spending which they are required to file so merely because a PAC is registered does not mean that it is legitimate.
Limiting your donations to well established PACs is a good policy to avoid being scammed.
Also, if a PAC doesn’t ask for your employment information and citizenship status it is a scam because legitimate PACs are barred from taking donations from federal contractors or foreign nationals, which is why legitimate PACs will always inquire about your job status and citizenship.
As for charities, since you can’t be sure when you are contacted by a charity whether or not they are legitimate, the best course of action is to go to charitynavigator.org where you can find out if the charity is legitimate as well as how to contact legitimate charities to make a contribution.
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Scam of the day – September 24, 2023 – Flash Drive Curiosity Leads to Identity Theft
Curiosity killed the cat and it can also invade your computer and result in a scammer getting access to your computer through malware such as a keystroke logging program that can read and steal all of the information stored on your computer, such as your Social Security number, credit card numbers and passwords. It can lead to you becoming a victim of identity theft. It also can lead to data breaches at companies where you work. What scammers and identity thieves have been doing recently is leaving USB flash drives at bars where employees of a company they wish to hack go after work as well as the parking lots of companies that they wish to hack, hoping that people who work at the targeted company will see the USB flash drives and then curious about what is on them, put them into their computers at work and, without thinking, download the malicious software.
TIPS
Never put a USB flash drive into your computer that you are not absolutely sure is clean. The risk is too great. Let the cat live.
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Scam of the day – September 23, 2023 – JP Morgan Chase Phishing Email
Phishing emails, by which scammers and identity thieves attempt to lure you into either clicking on links contained within the email which download malware or providing personal information that will be used to make you a victim of identity theft, are nothing new. They are a staple of identity thieves and scammers and with good reason because they work. Reproduced below is a copy of a new phishing email presently circulating that appears to come from JP Morgan Chase Bank.
JP Morgan Chase is a popular target for this type of phishing email because it is one of the largest banks in the United States. Like so many phishing emails, this one attempts to lure you into responding by making you think there is an emergency to which you must respond. As phishing emails go, this one is pretty good. It looks legitimate and the version appearing in your email comes with a legitimate appearing Chase logo. As so often is the case with these type of phishing emails, it does not contain your account number in the email nor is it personally addressed to the receiver of the email, but merely uses your email address.
Here is a copy of the Chase phishing email presently being circulated.
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TIPS
There are a number of indications that this is not a legitimate email from Chase, but instead is a phishing email. Most notably, the email address from which this phishing email was sent has no relation to Chase. Most likely it is part of a botnet of infected zombie computers used by scammers to send out such phishing emails. It is also important to note that although the email contained a legitimate appearing Chase logo, such logos are very easy to counterfeit. As with all phishing emails, two things can happen if you click on the links provided. Either you will be sent to a legitimate looking, but phony website where you will be prompted to input personal information that will be used to make you a victim of identity theft or, even worse, merely by clicking on the link, you may download keystroke logging malware that will steal all of your personal information from your computer or cellphone and use it to make you a victim of identity theft.
If you receive an email like this and think it may possibly be legitimate, merely call the customer service number where you can confirm that it is a scam, but make sure that you dial the telephone number correctly because scammers have been known to buy phone numbers that are just a digit off of the legitimate numbers for financial companies, such as Chase to trap you if you make a mistake in dialing the real number. Alternatively you can go to http://www.chase.com to check on your account.
I have disarmed section of the phishing email where it asks you to click on “Complete Your Verification Process.”
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Scam of the day – September 22, 2023 – Ace Rewards Scams
Ace Hardware is a large, popular hardware store and like many stores has a loyalty program called Ace Rewards. Ace recently sent out a warning to its Ace Rewards members that scammers, posing as Ace Hardware are sending emails to Ace Reward members offering a prize for completing a survey. In order to receive your prize, you are required to pay a small fee to cover shipping and handling. The scammers are also sending emails in which they direct the targeted victim to a fake website that appears to be that of Ace Hardware. Unfortunately, if you take the survey and provide your credit card or debit card to pay for the shipping and handling of your prize, the only thing you will receive will be excessive charges on your credit or debit card. If you to the phony website, you may end up unwittingly downloading malware or providing personal information that will be used to make you a victim of identity theft.
TIPS
Trust me, you can’t trust anyone. The email address from which the phony email is sent may look legitimate, but the easy way to avoid the problem is to merely go to the actual website of Ace Hardware which is http://www.acehardware.com. Any promotion or sale will always be available on Ace’s website.
It is always better not to click on a link in an email to go to a website, but rather type in the URL that you know is legitimate. However, you may want to go the extra step and actually do a search to determine who owns the website you are on. There are a number of ways of doing this. One of the easiest is to go to ICANN and enter the domain name and click on “lookup.” This will enable you to find out who actually owns the website. So for instance, if you think you are going to the Ace Hardware website and the website you are on is owned by someone in Nigeria, you can be pretty confident it is a scam. Here is the link to ICANN https://lookup.icann.org/
Also, Ace Hardware, like most legitimate companies will never ask for payment information or passwords as a part of any survey.
Finally, as always, you should never use your debit card when buying anything online (or at a brick and mortar store as well) because federal laws protecting you from liability for fraudulent purposes are far stronger for credit card purchases than debit card purchases.
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Scam of the day – September 21, 2023 – Amazon Text Message Scam
Recently there has been an increase in the number of people receiving phony text messages that purport to be sent from Amazon telling you that your account has been hacked. These phony text messages, called “smishing” will either attempt to lure you into providing personal information that will be used to make you a victim or identity theft or try to persuade you to click on a link that will download malware.
A famous bank robber was once asked why he robbed banks to which he responded, “because that is where the money is” which is why it is not surprising that scammers have used Amazon as the basis for a wide variety of scams due to so many people buying products through Amazon.
You can provide a phone number for Amazon to text you alerts and notifications regarding your account so how can you tell if a text message is legitimate? The real Amazon will never ask for your password or personal information in a text message.
TIPS
If you have a question about your Amazon account, you can either contact them through their website at https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html or call them at 1 (888) 280-4331. Don’t trust any text message that purports to be from Amazon. If you think it might be legitimate, merely call them at 1-(888) 280-4331.
It is a good practice to never click on a link in a text message or email unless you have absolutely confirmed that it is legitimate.
Here is a link to information Amazon provides about steps you can take to make your account more secure. https://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&node=21599686011
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