NCL Communications Department

This Just In: News from Fraud.org

Looking for a Work-at-Home Job? Avoid Scams, Read These Tips! (03.01.2008)

The Internet is a great place to find gifts, compare prices, and avoid the crush in stores during the holiday season. Though many consumers now shop online, some are wary of doing so. November’s tips in the National Consumers League’s “2007 Scam-Free Calendar” provide advice about how to shop online safely. Read more >>>

Phishing is when identity thieves try to trick you into providing your personal information by pretending to be someone’s they’re not. October’s tips in the National Consumers League’s “2007 Scam-Free Calendar” explain how phishing works and how people can protect themselves and their computers.
Read more >>>

If someone you don’t know sends you a check or money order but wants you to wire or send a portion of the money somewhere, it’s a scam that could cost you thousands of dollars. September’s tips in the National Consumers League’s “2007 Scam-Free Calendar” help consumers learn how to recognize fake check scams and avoid being victimized. Read more >>>

The telephone is a vital link to the outside world – but do you sometimes wish unwanted telemarketing calls would stop? You can take control of your phone and reduce the number of sales calls you receive by following August’s tips in the National Consumers League’s “2007 Scam-Free Calendar.” Read more >>>

Investing is a good way to build a nest egg for retirement, but it pays to do your homework so you can make wise decisions and avoid losing your money to fraud. July’s tips in the National Consumers League’s “2007 Scam-Free Calendar” help consumers learn how to find information about investment opportunities and the companies offering them, and who to contact if they have questions or complaints. Read more >>>

Many people get their start as door-to-door sales professionals employed by reputable companies. Some young people, however, are recruited by unethical companies to join traveling sales crews, predatory and dangerous sales "opportunities" presented by unscrupulous adults. June’s tips in the National Consumers League’s “2007 Scam-Free Calendar” help consumers learn to spot the difference between a legitimate door-to-door salesperson and members of a traveling sales crew, who may be suffering at the hands of greedy supervisors. Read more >>>

Consumers: Avoid Auto Sales and Repair Rip-offs this May (05.01.2007)

Buying a used car and having your car repaired can be major expenses, so it pays to be careful. May’s tips in the National Consumers League’s “2007 Scam-Free Calendar” tell you how to check out a car before you decide whether to purchase it and how to choose a good mechanic. Read more >>>

You’re less likely to be an ID theft victim if you follow the April tips in the National Consumers League’s “2007 Scam-Free Calendar.” They provide sensible suggestions for safeguarding your personal information. Read more >>>

NCL Fraud Center statistics show that con artists are increasingly using money transfer services to obtain payment from victims in telemarketing and Internet scams. As the March tips in NCL’s “2007 Scam-Free Calendar” explain, this method of payment is popular with crooks because it’s fast and they can pick up the money in cash, making it difficult to track them down. No matter what the pitch is, if someone you don’t know asks you to send payment through a money transfer service, NCL says don’t do it. Read More>>>

The pitch is that you’ll make money by joining the program and recruiting others. But the reality is that in pyramid schemes, you and your friends will lose money, not make it. February’s tips in the National Consumers League’s “2007 Scam-Free Calendar” help consumers learn how to tell the difference between pyramid schemes and legitimate money-making opportunities. Read More>>>

Today the National Consumers League has released its annual lists of the top telemarketing and Internet scams plaguing consumers in 2006, with Fake Check Scams topping the Telemarketing Fraud list and ranking 3rd among Internet-based scams. Fake Check Scams, in which victims receive a realistic-looking phony check and don’t discover it’s no good until after depositing it and wiring money back to the crook, have been on the rise since NCL created a category for the scam in its fraud database in 2003; in 2005, Fake Check Scams ranked #4 and #5 in the Fraud Center’s Internet and Telemarketing scam reports, respectively. Read More>>>

National Consumers League Calendar Helps Consumers Spot and Avoid Counterfeit Drugs (01.01.2007)

How can you tell if the prescription drugs you buy are counterfeit or the real thing? The January tips in the National Consumers League’s “2007 Scam-Free Calendar” tell you what to look for and who to contact if you suspect that drug products are phony. Read More>>>

Just because an email says it’s from customerservice@yourbank.com, how can you be sure? According to the National Consumers League (NCL), online identity thieves frequently use emails pretending to be from people’s banks or other trusted sources to trick them into providing their account numbers and other personal information, a practice called “phishing.” How’s a consumer to know whether the “sender” of an email is really who they say they are? New information at www.phishinginfo.org launched today explains how technology can help protect consumers from potentially dangerous emails by verifying the source of email messages. Read More>>>

Washington, DC—Consumer confidence in conducting business and protecting personal data online is threatened every day by phishing scams. In an initiative led by the National Consumers League (NCL), law enforcement, financial services and technical industries have joined forces to combat this threat. The group today issued a “call to action” with the release of a paper outlining key recommendations that form a comprehensive plan for combating phishing more effectively. Read More>>>

2005 Fraud Trends: Consumers Being Hounded by Internet and Telemarketing Scams

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today the National Consumers League (NCL) released its annual lists of the top telemarketing and Internet scams that plagued consumers in 2005. More consumers are reporting scams, and victims are losing more money, according to the nonprofit organization, which is headquartered in Washington, DC. Based on information that consumers provided last year to NCL’s National Fraud Information Center/Internet Fraud Watch program, the average loss to telemarketing fraud rose from $1,974 in 2004 to $2,892 in 2005, and Internet fraud losses more than doubled, from an average of $895 in 2004 to $1,917. The number of scams reported rose by 39 percent for telemarketing fraud and 12 percent for Internet fraud. Read More>>>

October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month: ID Thieves Preying on Consumers with New Phishing Scam Called Pharming

Washington, DC—In observance of National Cyber Security Awareness Month in October, the National Consumers League (NCL) and the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) have partnered to warn consumers about new computer-based scams threatening their bank accounts and other sensitive personal information. The Washington-based advocates are focusing their efforts on how consumers can protect themselves from the evolving tactics that are used for online “phishing” scams. Phishing is when ID thieves trick people into providing their social security numbers, financial account numbers, PIN numbers, mothers’ maiden names, and other personal information. Read More>>>

Since legitimate marketing for the federal program began last week, consumers across the nation are becoming aware that, starting in January 2006, Medicare will begin to offer coverage for prescription drugs. As prescription drug plans, consumer and health advocates, industry, and the government begin to send information about the new drug benefit out to the public, people in Medicare will need to know how to tell if they are dealing with a reliable resource. Read More>>>

NCL News: Phishing Scams Rank in Top Ten Telemarketing and Internet Scams in 2004 2.03.2005

Today the National Consumers League released its annual lists of top frauds as reported by consumers to its National Fraud Information Center/Internet Fraud Watch with alarming increases in the average losses of victims reporting the scams in both telemarketing and Internet fraud. And for the first time ever, phishing scams appeared in both top ten lists. Read More>>>

For months now, Americans on Medicare have been able to sign up for prescription drug discount cards, a part of the Medicare prescription drug law that was passed this time last year. Unfortunately, only about 1.5 million low-income Americans have signed up for a card. More than three times that many had been expected to enroll in the program by year’s end, and more than 7 million people are eligible. Read More >>>
 

Washington, DC—Identity thieves are using a new scheme dubbed “phishing” to trick people into providing their Social Security numbers, financial account numbers, passwords, PIN numbers, and other personal information, and anyone with a telephone or email can be a victim, warns the National Consumers League. This method of ID theft is now the fourth most common Internet scam. A new Web site www.phishinginfo.org, describes how phishing works, how people can protect themselves, and where to go for help if they’ve been “hooked” by a phishing scam. Read More>>>

New Tips at Fraud.org
New Brochure (PDF)
 

Advocacy Group Warns that More and More Consumers Falling for Fake
Check Scams 8.11.2004

Washington, DC—The National Consumers League, the nation’s oldest consumer advocacy organization, has partnered with the American Bankers Association (ABA) to alert the public to the growing problem of fake check scams. Based on complaints reported to NCL’s National Fraud Information Center/Internet Fraud Watch database since last December, when the fake check category was added, these scams are now the seventh most common Internet fraud. Consumers who reported fake check scams to NCL’s fraud programs between January 1 and June 30, 2004 lost an average of $5,000.  In many cases, the contact is initiated by email. Read More>>>
 

The Better Business Bureau system today issued a national alert to warn consumers and businesses about two questionable operations that are falsely using the BBB name to trick victims. One business is perpetrating an advance fee loan scam that targets consumers and businesses with poor credit records. It has provided as a reference fictitious BBB phone numbers that are answered by representatives who falsely claim to be with the Better Business Bureau and provide a positive report on the business in question. Read More >>>
 

Consumer Group Says Americans Vulnerable to, Unaware of Counterfeit Drugs 6.21.04

The National Consumers League (NCL) announced today its concerns for American consumers’ vulnerability to counterfeit drugs, a growing problem given the recent rise in government investigations, the explosion of Internet sales of prescription drugs, and new survey results that demonstrate consumers’ inability to identify suspect drugs. Read More >>>

Read the survey

Relay services were designed to help people with hearing or speech difficulties use the telephone. Now there is a new way to make relay calls – through the Internet. While Internet relay services are very convenient for many hearing or speech-impaired people, some enterprising con artists are also taking advantage of them to contact potential victims. Read More >>>

First “Do Not Call” Case Announced 5.5.04

If you’ve received a call from the National Consumer Council (NCC) offering to help you with your debts, you’re not alone. Those calls may stop now that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has sued the NCC and related corporations and individuals for allegedly violating consumers’ “do not call” rights and deceiving them about the organization and the services it offers. Read More >>>

First CAN-SPAM Cases Brought 4.29.04

On April 29, 2004 the Federal Trade Commission, U.S. Department of Justice, and Postal Inspection Service announced action against two spam operations under the CAN-SPAM Act, which went into effect on January 1. Read More >>>

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