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Scam of the day – August 13, 2020 – Impostor Scams Evolving
Impostor scams have long been among the most lucrative for scammers. While there are many variations of this scam, the most common variations have involved scammers calling their intended victims on the telephone posing as some governmental agency such as the IRS or...
Scam of the day – August 12, 2020 – Increase in Sophisticated Virtual Kidnapping Scams
I have been warning you about phony kidnapping scams, also known as virtual kidnapping, for seven years. The scam starts with a telephone call informing the person answering the phone that a child or other relative has been kidnapped and if the person receiving the...
Scam of the day – August 11, 2020 – Shimmers Causing Credit Card Problems
Skimmers are small electronic devices that are easily installed by an identity thief on gas pumps, ATMs and other card reading devices. The skimmer steals all of the information from the magnetic strip credit card or debit card used which then permits the identity...
Scam of the day – August 10, 2020 – New Sophisticated Netflix Phishing Scam
For a long time I have warned you that the popularity of Netflix makes it a preferred subject for phishing emails and phishing text messages, which are referred to as smishing. Smishing is the name given to text messages that lure you into clicking on links or...
Scam of the day – August 9, 2020 – Coronavirus Cryptocurrency Scam
Although cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, may seem to be new. I have been writing in Scamicide.com about cryptocurrency scams for more than five years. Cryptocurrencies are legitimate, but scammers are increasingly taking advantage of the public's fascination with...
Scam of the day – August 8, 2020 – Jury Duty Scam Revisited
I have been warning you about the jury duty scam for eight years, but it continues to snare many unwary victims. Generally, the scam starts with a telephone call that you receive purportedly from a law enforcement officer informing you that you have failed to appear...
Scam of the day – August 7, 2020 – New 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. ...
Scam of the day – August 6, 2020 – FTC Sues Company Selling Phony Coronavirus Treatments
The coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to spread both in the United States and worldwide with many people rightfully concerned about contracting the disease. I have been warning you about coronavirus related scams since February. In particular I have reported on the...
Scam of the day – August 5, 2020 – American Express Phishing Email
Today's Scam of the day is about a phishing email that purports to be from American Express. The graphics, grammar and overall appearance of the email is not very convincing. In addition, it does not even carry the American Express logo, which is a simple thing to...
Scam of the day – August 4, 2020 – Census Scams
The United States Census Bureau is conducting a national census as it is required by law to do every ten years. The Census is very important and is required by the Constitution. Census data is used to determine the numbers of members for each state in the House of...
Scam of the day – August 3, 2020 – FBI Investigating Massive Instances of “Brushing”
Many people in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom are reporting receiving unordered packages of seeds sent from China. A wide variety of conspiracy theories have sprung up to explain what is going on, but the most obvious answer is that what is...
Scam of the day – August 2, 2020 – Arrests Made in Twitter Hacking
In July 17th's Scam of the day I reported to you about the hacking of Twitter accounts belonging to many prominent people including Joe Biden, Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Kanye West, Kim Kardashian, Warren Buffet, Jeff Bezos, Mike Bloomberg along with company Twitter...
Scam of the day – August 1, 2020 – Washington Redskins Merchandise Scams
After 89 years, the NFL's Washington Redskins franchise has finally decided to change its controversial name which has long been criticized for demeaning Native Americans. The team will temporarily be known by the tremendously creative moniker of the Washington...
Scam of the day – July 31, 2020 – Phony Customer Service Phone Number Scam
According to the old saying, "no good deed goes unpunished" so unfortunately what happened recently to Lisa Williams who used Cash App to collect donations to help buy food for families in Detroit suffering financially during the Coronavirus pandemic should not be...
Scam of the day – July 30, 2020 – Porch Piracy Increases During Coronavirus Pandemic.
The dramatically increased popularity of online shopping during the Coronavirus pandemic has brought a dramatic increase in the number of packages delivered by companies such as UPS and Federal Express. The popularity of online shopping has also resulted in a new...
Scam of the day – July 29, 2020 – Counterfeit Check Scam
Often I will remind you about particular types of scams I have described previously because they continue to victimize many people. Today's Scam of the day involves a scam that commonly is used by scammers in regard to Craigslist ads as well as in many other...
Scam of the day – July 28, 2020 – Craigslist Scam Resurfaces
With some parts of the country reopening, many people are looking for Summer rentals and Craigslist is a popular place to go for people looking for a Summer home to rent. It is also a popular place for scammers to place phony ads to cheat unsuspecting victims....
Scam of the day – July 27, 2020 – FTC Shuts Down Debt Relief Scam
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently settled its lawsuit against Raymond Gonzalez, Carlos S. Guerrero, Joshua Hernandez and their companies doing business as SCG Solution and Second Choice Horizon. These individuals and their companies had been charged with...
Scam of the day – July 26, 2020 – Alleged Romance Scammers Arrested
Over the years I have warned you many times about romance scams, but it is important to do so again because these scams are getting worse. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Americans lost more money to romance scams last year than to any other scam and...
Scam of the day – July 25, 2020 – Investment Scammer Pleads Guilty
Longtime Scamicide readers will remember that I have written many times about a wide variety of investment scams. There are many different investment scams, but generally, people often become victims of investment scams when they invest in things that they don't...
Scam of the day – July 24, 2020 – Coronavirus Related Hearing Aid Scam
Recently, the Federal Trade Commission and the Missouri Attorney General sent warning letters demanding two companies, Ear to Hear Healthcare, LLC and Zephyr Hearing Aid Center cease and desist sending misleading and deceptive letters to consumers in which they...
Scam of the day – July 23, 2020 -Phony GoFundMe Pages for Navy Fire Victims
Crowdfunding is the name for the process by which people raise funds on websites such as GoFundMe for various projects from movies and books to the development of new businesses and, most notably, to help people in need of charity Unfortunately, as I have been...
Scam of the day – July 22, 2020 – FTC Wins Judgment Against Student Debt Relief Scammers
More than forty-two million Americans have student loans with an outstanding balance of more than 1.4 trillion dollars so it is no surprise that scammers are focusing their attention on these students and former students through scams that falsely promise to provide...
Scam of the day – July 21, 2020 – Increase in Mortgage Foreclosure Rescue Scams
The Coronavirus pandemic has brought difficult financial times for many people and so it is not surprising that many people are having difficulty paying their mortgages and are facing the specter of foreclosure. As could be expected (certainly by anyone who read...
Scam of the day – July 20, 2020 – Bank of America Phishing Email
Here is another good example of a phishing email that is presently being circulated. This particular phishing email was sent to us by a Scamicide subscriber. It makes for compelling reading, but it is a scam. Phishing emails, by which scammers and identity thieves...
Scam of the day – July 19, 2020 – Massive Credit Card Fraud Scam Stopped
At the request of the Federal Trade Commission and the Florida Office of the Attorney General, a federal court has temporarily halted an alleged sham credit card interest rate reduction operation that often targeted financially distressed consumers and older adults....
Scam of the day – July 18,2020 – FTC Sending Refunds to Victims of Debt Relief Scam
Today's Scam of the day is a bit late because I had emergency surgery yesterday, but after not missing a single day in 3,012 days, I was not going to start now. Being in debt is a difficult situation faced by many people. Unfortunately, it can be made much worse when...
Scam of the day – July 17, 2020 – Massive Hacking of Prominent Twitter Accounts
Two days ago, Twitter accounts belonging to many prominent people including Joe Biden, Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Kanye West, Kim Kardashian, Warren Buffet, Jeff Bezos, Mike Bloomberg and many more prominent people along with company Twitter accounts of Apple, Uber,...
Scam of the day – July 16, 2020 – MGM Data Breach Bigger Than Originally Thought
Last February I told you about personal information of 10,683,188 people gathered in a data breach of MGM Resorts hotels turning up on Dark Web websites where criminals buy and sell stolen data. The data included full names, home addresses, phone numbers, email...
Scam of the day – July 15, 2020 – Amazon Phishing Email
Shopping on Amazon is extremely popular both with consumers and scammers seeking to exploit Amazon's popularity. I have warned you many times over the years about scammers who send various types of phishing emails which purport to be from Amazon attempting to lure...
Scam of the day – July 14, 2020 – Charity Scams related to the Coronavirus Pandemic and the Civil Rights Movement
In recent weeks the United States has faced two major issues, namely the continuing and worsening Coronavirus Pandemic and a heightened awareness of the need for greater civil rights for all Americans spurred on by the tragic death of George Floyd. Looking at the...
Scam of the day – July 13, 2020 – Synthetic Identity Theft Ring Busted in Louisiana
Twenty people were arrested recently in Louisiana on charges related to a synthetic identity theft ring, which, according to police, was operated by Charles Roy and Tanya Ward. Many people are not familiar with the term "synthetic Identity theft," but it poses a...
Scam of the day – July 12, 2020 – FTC Refunding Money to Victims of Work at Home Scam
Working at home sounds very appealing. No commute and you get to work in your pajamas. What could be more convenient than that? It may sound convenient, but many work at home opportunities are scams and some even make you into an accomplice to a crime. Following a...
Scam of the day – July 11, 2020 – Global Empowerment Fund Scam
To paraphrase Thomas Paine, "these are the times that try men's (and women's) wallets." Many people are having financial difficulties due to the Coronavirus pandemic, which unfortunately makes them vulnerable to scammers eager to take advantage of their concerns. ...
Scam of the day – July 10, 2020 – More Coronavirus Related Phishing Scams
I first started telling you about coronavirus phishing scams on February 8th. Today, I am warning you again because scammers have dramatically increased the number of phishing scams using the Coronavirus as a hook to lure people into providing personal information or...
Scam of the day – July 9, 2020 – FTC Issues Warning About Skimmers at Gas Pumps
Summer and the lifting of many Coronavirus restrictions around the country are resulting in more people taking to the roads. Recently, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a warning about the dangers presented by skimmers on gas pumps. I have warned you about...
Scam of the day – July 8, 2020 – Costco Text Message Scam
Identity thieves are sending text messages to people that appear to come from Costco indicating that your Costco membership will be cancelled unless you click on a link and take a survey in which you are asked for personal information that is used for purposes of...
Scam of the day – July 7, 2020 – Good News About Robocalls
Over the years I have written numerous times about the problems presented by robocalls and with good reason. Automated robocalls which, for commercial purposes, are illegal, are the number one consumer complaint reported by the public to the Federal Trade Commission...
Scam of the day – July 6, 2020 – Phony App Store Receipt Scam
Today's Scam of the day comes from a Scamicide reader who was emailed the receipt copied below. It is a very well done phishing email that like many phishing emails tries to lure you into clicking on a link that will either download malware such as ransomware or...
Scam of the day – July 5, 2020 – New AOL Phishing Scam
Today's Scam of the day is about a phishing email presently circulating that attempts to lure you into clicking on a link in order to continue using your AOL account. If you click on the link one of two things can occur and both are bad. Either you will end up...
Scam of the day – July 4, 2020 – Fourth of July Scams
Every season is scam season and every day provides unique opportunity for scam artists, the only criminals that we call artists, to try to scam us out of our hard earned money. Here are a few scams that you should be aware of that will be coming today on the Fourth...
Scam of the day – July 3, 2020 – FTC Settles Lawsuit Against Bogus Healthcare Device Company
The FTC recently settled charges brought against Willow Labs LLC and three other defendants who made and distributed a low-level light therapy device called Willow Curve which the defendants falsely claimed was clinically proven to be able to successfully treat...
Scam of the day – July 2, 2020 – Black Lives Matter Phishing Scam
Scammers constantly take advantage of whatever is foremost in the minds of the people to turn it into an opportunity for scams. Since the start of the Coronavirus pandemic we have seen many phishing emails that exploit the public's interest and concern about the...
Scam of the day – July 1, 2020 – FBI Issues Warning About Coronavirus Antibody Testing Scams
The Coronavirus pandemic continues to rage throughout much of the country and many parts of the world. With no vaccine presently in sight, much attention has been focused on antibody tests for the Coronavirus. A proper antibody test can determine if you have...
Scam of the day – June 30, 2020 – FTC Refunding Millions to Victims of Risk-Free Trial Scam
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is mailing refunds to victims of a scam operated by Triangle Media Corporation which sold a variety of products online, including skin creams, electronic cigarettes and dietary supplements. Their advertising indicated that customers...
Scam of the day – June 29, 2020 – FTC Settles Claim Against Kohl’s For Failure to Provide Information to Identity Theft Victims
If you are a victim of identity theft, it is very important to get information as quickly as possible in regard to how your identity has wrongfully been used in order to begin the process of fixing the problem. This is why the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)...
Scam of the day – June 28, 2020 – Chase Phishing Scam
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. ...
Scam of the day – June 27, 2020 – Dangerous AT&T Phishing Email
In the years that I have been writing Scamicide, I have written many times about the extreme danger presented by phishing emails. These are emails that attempt to lure you into either clicking on links in the email that download harmful malware such as ransomware or...
Scam of the day – June 26, 2020 – Unusual Coronavirus Stimulus Check Scam
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed documents in federal court seeking a permanent injunction against Traffic Jam Events, LLC and its owner, David J. Jeansonne II to stop an incredibly deceptive scam by which the defendants used false promises regarding the...
Scam of the day – June 25, 2020 – Grandparent Scam Still Claiming Victims
Many of you are familiar with the grandparent scam where a grandparent receives a telephone call from someone purporting to be their grandchild who has gotten into some trouble, either a traffic accident, legal trouble or medical problems in a far away place. The...