Holiday employment scam
I work for a major credit card company, and every y e a r, we have prob- lems with scammers during the holidays. This year, how- ever, things have gotten much worse. We get calls daily from clients who have fallen victim to some type of scam. We are committed to warning our clients and others, so I’m hoping that you’ll pass along my suggestions to your readers:
If a deal or a sale seems too good to be true, it’s prob- ably a scam. This is espe- cially true if the usual price for something falls on the expensive side. A client saw an item he wanted that is usually priced at $399 on sale at an online company for $79. Thank goodness he decided not to buy it.
If you are planning on donating to a charity online, look them up before you send them money or information about your- self. You might want to try charitynavigator.org or any other reliable charity-rating service.
If you are asked to pay for something with gift cards, or if you are asked to cash a check and send some- one excess funds, don’t. It’s an old scam.
Perhaps your best bet for shopping online is to use a company you trust, are very familiar with or have used before. Using a credit or debit card is safest. Stay away from “cash on deliv- ery” as a way to pay.
Watch out for emails that ask you to confirm deliv- ery or that request your bank PIN number or a pass- word in order to deliver
Two weeks ago, I saw an advertisement for holiday employment. They emailed me an application, but they wanted my Social Security number and the name of my bank. They said paychecks would be automatically deposited in my account. A red flag went up when I was told that they would need my checking account number, my savings account number and a pin number. I turned them in to the FBI. —
Driving in bad Weather
I am what most companies call a “Road Warrior” because my job requires me to travel in all kinds of weather. If any of your readers are traveling by car in snowy weather, I highly recommend they take a well-insulated sleeping bag, bottled water, energy bars, a battery-powered radio, flashlights and something to read. It might save their life. —