 'Tis The Season For Fraud
December and the Christmas season seems to be the time of year when fraudsters and con artists try their scams on us the most. It is true that we have so many things on our minds, what with our usual day to day grind, we now have the shopping season, party season, card sending season and any other number of seasons thrust upon us. It's no wonder that our guard is down. I have received a number of email fraud attempts and I thought I would pass them along.
- American Airlines email lets you know that your ticket orders have been confirmed and you can download your tickets by simply clicking here. It doesn't even look official. Don't click.
- If you are traveling during the season and plan on staying in a hotel be on the lookout for this one. After you have checked in and get settled into your room, someone calls the front desk and asks for your room number. Your phone rings in your room and the other party states that they are from the front desk. They state that upon your check in, they came across a problem with your charge card information. They will ask you to re-read your credit card number and verify the last 3 digits on the reverse side. Not thinking that there is a fraud (and it also being the holiday season, remember?) you might give this person your information since the call seems to have come from the front desk. Within a matter of hours, the fraud will have charged thousands of dollars on your card before your card processor can stop it. Of course when they stop it, they freeze your card which means you can't use it to charge your hotel stay. If you should receive the call, tell the person you will come down to the front desk and straighten the situation out. Don't give out your information!
- An email supposedly coming from Visa states that for security reasons your credit card has been blocked. They assign you an official looking case number and they state that they are Visa Security Department. In order to reactivate your card they want you to download the attached form and fill it out. Don't click and don't fill out form! These clicks could allow the fraudster to infiltrate your computer system with a virus and the ability to steal all of your information. This could also happen to your smart phones.
- Please be aware where you slide your debit card. Pay special attention to gas stations and remote ATM's. Look at the device and see if anything seems out of the ordinary...does it look like part of the machine? At gas stations pump your gas at the pumps closest to the store entrance. Crooks find it easier to attach their devices at the farthest away pumps and less traveled ATM's.
- Don't let people standing in line behind you at the check out counter see your PIN's. In fact if you can process the transaction as a credit transaction that requires a signature, then do so.
Please remember that the people wanting to take your money know that you are pre-occupied with everything involved with the holiday season and all it takes is to let your guard down just for a moment and POOF! you've been scammed!
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