'Tis The Season For Scamming

[sandyclaus]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California, Maryland, and the Ukraine

We got a huge wake-up call today when my nephew became a victim of one of those Payment Forwarding scams. You know the ones - they ask you to accept deposits in your personal bank accounts for their "clients", and you are asked to forward payments to those "clients" via Union and keep a percentage of the total deposit for yourself as a processing fee. It's just one of many such scams out there, and these scammers are sure to run rampant during the holidays, especially for those looking for an instant boost in cash to pay those bills and buy those holiday gifts. I repeatedly and thoroughly warned my nephew about this being a scam, but since the company was "legitimate" and there were no fraud alerts on it, he figured it would either be the best work from home job he ever had or the worst scam. He got burned, of course.

For those who think they may have been scammed, or who are even considering getting involved in one of these scams, you should read up on it on this website: http://www.fraudaid.com/

Very helpful information found there. And for those who are victims of a scam (like my nephew), this page is particularly helpful in figuring out what to do at different stages of the scam: http://www.fraudaid.com/solution_center/menu.htm

Don't be foolish. If something sounds too good to be true, it usually is! Let's all have a safe and happy Holiday season.

 

[Mass_Shyster]

Another one an acquaintance got hooked by:

Answered an ad on Craigslist for a painter. Bottom line was they sent him a check and he was use the funds to pay the other workers and buy supplies. Of course the other guy was to buy the supplies.

The bank sued him for the full amount of the check after it bounced.

A more creative one is where an overseas law firm asks a local attorney to assist settling a claim. Check bounces, but since it's an account for client funds, the lawyer gets dragged in front of the bar for mishandling client funds.

 

[You Are Guilty]

Earlier this year, there was a rash of attorney-targeted spam emails which, on their face, purported to want to refer a case over (presumably of the Nigerian Prince who kept his $11M "under his pillow). Even scarier were the follow up emails from various colleagues "warning" that this was a scam. How they were able to deduce that on their own remains a mystery.

Point being, even "smart lawyers" (coughcough) fall victim to this stuff. Be vigilant and remember, TANSTAAFL!