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Can you think of anything more infuriating than getting ripped off by credit card scams? (Read Debt Relief Scams for some ideas.) Maybe there are worse things but just the mere thought of this really steams my tea. These perpetrators are cowards and thieves and there are very few people I have less respect for. Enough. Here are the top scams and what you can do to protect yourself.
1. False Promises
Often someone will contact you to offer you a great way to reduce your interest rate. All you have to do, they tell you, is to pay them an upfront fee.
To sweeten the deal, they encourage you to put the fee on the card itself. Don’t fall for this no matter how good the deal sounds. Even if you think the offer is coming from the company itself, rest assured it’s a scam. Legitimate companies don’t charge upfront fees for rate reductions. These thieves want your money or they want your information or both.
Besides asking for upfront dough, another sure-tale sign that you’re talking with a rip-off artist is if the call is computer-generated. Whenever you get approached with these kinds of offers just hang up.
How to avoid this scam.
Call the company yourself to request an interest rate reduction or look for credit card alternatives. Simple, Quick. Free. It’s a great way to protect your assets and credit score.
2. OH NO! There’s a problem with your account!
I almost fell for this one last week. I got an email from a Paypal fake site. They informed me that my there was a problem with my account and I had to log in to fix it. Of course, had I done so, these jerks would have obtained my Paypal password. The only reason I didn’t fall for it was because I forgot my password. (I knew my age and forgetfulness would come in handy one day.) Bottom line, if there is ever a legitimate problem with your account, Paypal and/or Ebay will ask you to go directly to their sites to fix it.
You can avoid this problem by never giving information to a caller or responding to an e-mail requesting private infomraiton. Always go directly to the sites rather clicking links. And if someone calls asking for information, hang up and call the company yourself. Your credit card has the toll-free phone number on it.
Often these scum bags have some partial information about you. They use this in order to build credibility and lower your defenses. Don’t fall for it Pilgrim.
3. Free Stuff you Don’t Want or Need
Ever get offers for free ring tones, music or access to inappropriate sites? These are festering pools full of bad stuff and computer viruses. Visit a site you shouldn’t and you increase your chances of contracting a computer virus or getting a Trojan horse. A virus will simply wreck your computer. A Trojan horse will wreck your computer and your credit. It will find your passwords and give the scammers access to your finances.
The absolute best way to make sure you don’t run into a problem like this is to simply refrain from going to the wrong neighbor on the net. In addition, make sure to have malware on your computer and update it often. If you travel, you need to take other precautions especially when it comes to using your credit card and avoiding identity theft.
The internet is a cool place but safety comes first. Take time. Slow down and take care. What scams have you come across lately? What advice would you share with us?
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Thanks to you both for excellent posts! It's so easy to get caught when you're rushing around at this time of year as well. These people are scum.
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What amazes me is how many people open all the emails from strangers that come in with attachments. I never do and am training my older relatives not to too. They don't think. Even ones from names you know can be suspect if their address book's been hijacked. All my connections know I don't open attachments, period.
I get fake Paypal ones all the time. The way you can tell easily is that it never in my experience has your name on it. It always says Dear Customer or some kind of generic greeting rather than addressing you by your full name.
It also has some kind of urgency attached to the message, like a problem with your account or that they plan to close it - something you'd rush to attend to. That way you don't have the same amount of time to spot it's a fake. The real Paypal will NEVER ask you for your password in an email. Never.
Usually the graphics suck too.
You can check where any email comes from by right-clicking it in your Inbox and selecting Properties, then Details tab. That will show you the real source. (You cannot take what it says in your inbox in the From: line as gospel as it can easily be changed to mask the real source.) Everything from Paypal will say it's from Paypal.com in the Details tab, no variation of that.
Very important: always forward any suspicious emails to Paypal's security team for them to investigate.They will look into it. Never reply to anything at all without checking if you're at all unsure. Better to ask than make a mistake. Here's how to report it step-by-step: https://cms.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/marketingweb?cmd=_render-content&content_ID=security/report_problem#report_suspicious_activity
You're not only safeguarding yourself, but you're doing the whole community a favor. Paypal shuts these scammers down very fast.
You can read more about suspicious activity at Paypal's security and protection section: https://cms.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/?cmd=_render-content&content_ID=security/suspicious_activity