Every year, people are losing millions of dollars to scam artists who bombard them with online, mail, door-to-door and telephone scams.
Fraudsters are cunning, heartless fast talkers who show no mercy when it comes to conning people into handing over their hard-earned money. They target people of all ages, ethnicities, backgrounds and incomes and lure people into paying for fake lotteries, Internet scams, get-rich-quick schemes and miracle health or weight loss programs.
If someone calls or approaches you for money, think twice before handing over a dime. Here are some ways to protect yourself:
Protect your identity at all times. Only give out personal information when you can absolutely trust the person you are talking to.
Never send money to anyone you don’t know or trust. Never send money or pay any fee to claim a prize or lottery winnings and never wire money to someone whose identity you cannot confirm. Never give your credit card or banking information over the phone unless you know the person.
Ask for identification and be assertive. For door-to-door salespeople, demand to see identification and send them away if you’re not comfortable.
Beware of text scams or spam e-mail. Never reply to spam e-mail or text messages from people or organizations you have never heard of. Legitimate banks would never ask for account information in an e-mail or text.
Beware of free downloads and requests for passwords. A “free” game, application or trial offer that requires a credit card number can lead to charges you didn’t expect. Downloading suspicious content can harm your computer and compromise your identity. Choose uncommon passwords and change them regularly.
