JOB SCAMS – Stealing Your Future

At some point in our lives, we all have to look for a job. Scammers try to take advantage of that fact. In fact, job scammers are taking advantage of job searchers more frequently according to the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) which observed an 118% increase in the scam in 2023.  

Job scammers can be difficult to detect. They advertise their scam jobs in the same places as honest employers in online ads, job sites, social media, in newspapers, and sometimes on TV and radio. Scammers may also reach out directly through a text message.

Of course, like most scammers, all they are after is your money and identity instead of a good worker.

Some fake jobs that scammers offer often include:

·         Work-from-home scams- While many of us like to work at home, scammers use the lure of working at home to take advantage of the victim. Reshipping scams and reselling merchandise scams are popular with scammers. Some of these scams could be tied to other crimes such as credit card fraud or even shoplifting. Also, at home jobs that asks the “employee” to move money around could make the “employee” into a money mule, an accomplice to a money laundering scheme. A key red flag is if the “employer” sends you a check to reimburse you for equipment. Instead of making the check out for an agreed amount, they overpay you and ask you to send back the difference. If this happens, stop communicating with this scammer. The check will bounce, and you will be on the hook with your bank for the whole amount.

·         Nanny, caregiver virtual assistant scams- To gain credibility, the scammer may claim to be a member of your community or from an organization that you know. A variation of the work at home check scheme is to send you a check. You are told to keep some of the money for your services then send the rest to someone else. This check will also bounce, putting you on the hook with your bank. If you hear any talk of a check being sent to you, and you sending part of it back or to someone else, walk away.

·         Job placement service scams- Honest job search services charge the hiring company for their services. They do not charge job candidates. If a job placement service approaches you and wants to charge you for helping you find employment, walk away.

·         Government and postal jobs scams- Some scammers will post ads offering to help in finding a government job for a fee. Finding job listings for the federal government or the postal service is free. All you have to do is to go to https://www.usajobs.gov/ or https://about.usps.com/careers/welcome.htm to find jobs that are being advertised. Do not pay someone to find a job for you!

Tips to avoid a job scam,

·         Research online- Do a search online of the company that wants to hire you with the words “scam,” “review,” or “complaint.”

·         Talk to someone you trust- Talk to a family member or friend to get their opinion of  the offer.

·         Do not pay for a promise of a job- Employers do not charge prospective employees. Scammers charge prospective employees!

·         Stay away from fake check scams- If a “potential employer” sends you a check and asks for part of it back, or sent to someone else, or put into gift cards, walk away from the job. The check will bounce, and the bank will want you to pay the full amount of the check. Honest employers will not send a check and ask for part of it back.

If you do pay a job scammer, contact the company that you used to send the money- debit/credit card, mobile payment app, wire transfer, gift card, reload card, or cryptocurrency- report the fraud, ask to have the transaction reversed if possible.

Also, report the fraud to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/ and to the Washington State Attorney General at https://www.atg.wa.gov/.

 

 

 

 

 

Identity Theft Resource Center:

https://www.idtheftcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/ITRC-2023-Trends-in-Identity-Report.pdf

 

CNET:

https://www.cnet.com/tech/scammers-are-creating-tons-of-fake-job-listings-thanks-to-ai/?s=09

 

NPR Marketplace:

https://www.marketplace.org/2024/07/11/have-you-been-texted-a-suspiciously-good-job-offer/

 

News 5 Cleveland:

https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/cell-phone-fraud

 

Federal Trade Commission:

https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/job-scams#examples

https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2024/07/looking-job-spot-scams

 

AARP:

https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/info-2019/work-at-home.html?intcmp=AE-FWN-LIB4-POS20

 

Washington State Attorney General’s Office:

https://www.atg.wa.gov/job-scams

 

SNOHOMISH COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE– Domestic Violence Coordinators

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office has Domestic Violence Coordinators who reach out to domestic violence victims to offer their help.  Learn how Sheriff's Office Domestic Violence Coordinators help DV victims find safety.

 

 

Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office: https://www.snohomishcountywa.gov/Archive.aspx?AMID=43

SCAM ALERT– Sheriff’s Office Reports Warrant and Jury Duty Scams

The Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office has issued an alert on its Facebook page about warrant and jury duty scams against Snohomish County citizens. The alert notes that the Sheriff’s Office receives reports of these scams on a weekly basis.

The scammers try to intimidate potential victim into paying money to have a warrant lifted or from being arrested due to missing jury duty, often through a phone call. An apparent trend is to demand that you pay by Bitcoin cryptocurrency.

As with many scams the scammers pretend to be someone they are not. In this case, they may pretend to be from the Sheriff’s Office or from the county court. Last year both the Sheriff’s Office and the Snohomish County Superior Court issued separate scam alerts for scammers pretending to be from their organizations.

The scammers immediately present you with a problem, you have a fine levied against you or at worst the cops are coming to arrest you.

The scammers pressure you to act quickly, without thinking or consulting with friends or family. They want you emotional so that you will not think logically or analytically. They also want to isolate you so that they have control.

And to get out of your “problem” you pay. The scammers want you to pay in a way that cannot be traced or reversed. Using a crypto currency has been popular lately with scammers. Like with gift cards, wire or money transfers, crypto currencies are extremely difficult to reverse.   

Understand that local police, courts, or other governmental entities will not call you to demand an immediate payment for a fine or to get out of an arrest warrant. Police are not in the habit of notifying people who have warrants against them.

The Sheriff’s Office says that people report giving money to these scams. While it seems that the warrant and jury duty scams are well publicized, people are still victimized by scammers.

If you receive a scam call like this, hang up!

Also, report the scam to the Sheriff’s Office and to the FBI at www.ic3.gov.

And please, pass this information to your friends, family, and coworkers. The more people who know about scams, the better we all can defend against scams.

 

Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office:

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=959726349514130&set=a.226070289546410

 

Federal Trade Commission:

https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2024/09/did-you-get-call-or-email-saying-you-missed-jury-duty-and-need-pay-its-scam?utm_campaign=did_you_get_a_call_or_ema&utm_content=1726496692&ut

https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2024/03/did-someone-send-you-bitcoin-atm-its-scam?utm_campaign=did_someone_send_you_to_a&utm_content=1715093861&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook,twitter

 

South Snohomish County Crime Watch:

https://ssnoccrimewatch.blogspot.com/2023/04/scam-update-scammers-pretend-to-be.html

https://ssnoccrimewatch.blogspot.com/2023/08/scam-update-jury-duty-scam-and-watch.html

 

 

SIM SWAPPING – Stealing Your Life

Criminals look for any way that they can gain access to your financial accounts to take your money. One method that they use is SIM Swapping.

A SIM card (Subscriber Identity Module) is a small circuit card that resides in your cell phone that identifies that phone as belonging to you. SIM cards can be removeable with the ability to be transferred between cell phones, or your phone can have an ESIM that is code embedded in your cell phone that identifies your phone as belonging to you.

If a criminal can swap SIMs to their phone, then they can impersonate you and break into your accounts.

A criminal who conducts a SIM swap also conducts two scams.

1.      They take personal information that they have gathered about you from purchased data from data breaches, gathered from a phishing campaign, or collecting sensitive information that you posted on social media to convince the phone carrier to give them a new SIM with your phone number.

2.      On successfully acquiring a SIM in your name, the criminal will try to break into one of your accounts. If the account has text based multifactor authentication (MFA) they can receive the code that your account sends out to help break into your account.

Indications that you have been a victim of SIM swapping include,

·         You cannot make or receives calls or texts.

·         An online account is locked because of suspected unauthorized access.

·         You receive alerts that someone is attempting to access an account, and you do not recognize the activity.

If you are victimized with a SIM swap, take action:

·         Contact your mobile carrier immediately.

·         Contact you bank and other financial services.

·         Disable MFA, change account(s) password(s), then enable MFA again.

·         Monitor financial accounts

·         Report to

o   The FBI IC3- https://www.ic3.gov/

o   FTC- https://www.identitytheft.gov/

You can take action to discourage SIM Swapping by

·         Set a Pin for your smartphone.

·         Use strong and unique passwords for all of your accounts.

·         DON’T POST EVERYTHING ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

·         Use non-SMS MFA. Instead use MFA with an authenticator app such as Microsoft Authenticator or Google Authenticator.

 

 

Associated Press:

https://apnews.com/article/sim-swapping-protections-tech-tip-e05ac6b894312041a5c1e4333a28df2a

 

FBI:

https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/lasvegas/news/press-releases/fbi-las-vegas-federal-fact-friday-sim-card-swapping

 

National Cybersecurity Alliance:

https://staysafeonline.org/resources/sim-card-swap-scams/

 

Federal Communications Commission:

https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/cell-phone-fraud

 

 

SCAM UPDATE – Scammers Including Pictures of Your Home

Threatening emails with a picture of your home. Several news sources have recently been reporting that scammers are sending threatening emails that include personal information and a picture of the recipient’s home. The Bellevue Police Department issued an alert earlier in September stating that the emails often contain home addresses, full names and a picture. Other sources have noted that the emails contain a picture of a house.

The emails claim to be from a hacker who hacked into the recipient’s computer and collected the recipient visiting adult websites. Sometimes the emails claim that the recipient is being watched and tracked by Pegasus spyware, an app produced be an Israeli company that sells the app to governments, law enforcement, and militaries around the world. The scammer tries to give the impression that they have a lot of information about the recipient and if they do not pay a ransom, often with Cryptocurrency, they will release the information to the recipient’s friends and family.

The information about the recipient contained in the email is easily accessed in the open on the internet. A picture of the recipient’s house can be freely obtained on Google Maps’ Street View mode.

The emails represent a new “feature” by sextortion scammers to jolt you into paying them to “suppress” incriminating information.

Of course, if you receive a sextortion email like this, don’t click on any links or attachments. Report it to the FBI’s www.IC3.gov website. Also, to avoid sextortion emails, never send compromising images of yourself to anyone and turn off (and/or cover) any web cameras when you are not using them

 

MyNorthwest KIRO Newsradio:

https://mynorthwest.com/3986583/bellevue-under-attack-from-ongoing-bitcoin-scam/

 

Verify:

https://www.verifythis.com/article/news/verify/scams-verify/have-you-received-a-threatening-email-asking-for-bitcoin-payment-with-a-photo-of-your-home-its-a-scam/536-6f618b1e-7fa0-4da6-8442-bffb097cbee9?s=09

 

Krebs on Security:

https://krebsonsecurity.com/2024/09/sextortion-scams-now-include-photos-of-your-home/

 

Authorities prosecute cyber criminals. We usually hear about scams and how it can be impossible to prosecute the criminals behind the fraud much less return any funds stolen from the victim. Here are two recent examples of authorities investigating and prosecuting international cyber criminals.

Two Nigerian brothers were convicted of targeting a 17-year-old male in a sextortion scheme that resulted in the teenager’s suicide in April 2024. Samuel Ogoshi, 24, and Samson Ogoshi, 21, from Lagos, were sentenced to 17 years and six months in prison in the U.S. for luring Jordan DeMay of Marquette, Michigan, by pretending to be a pretty girl, flirting with DeMay to convince him to send explicit pictures of himself then blackmailing him. John DeMay committed suicide less than six hours after the brothers started talking to him on Instagram. 38 other US victims identified as targeted by the men with 13 of them being minors.

The second case occurred in the United Kingdom. On August 30, 2024, the National Crime Agency (NCA) announced that three men pleaded guilty to operating an online service that helped attackers intercept one-time passcodes (OTPs) used to authenticate entry into many online accounts. Callum Picari, 22, from Hornchurch, Essex; Vijayasidhurshan Vijayanathan, 21, from Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire; and Aza Siddeeque, 19, from Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire hosted a website called OTP Agency that intercepted OTPs used in Multi-Factor Authentication schemes in a cybercrime as a service enterprise. Scammers would steal or purchase on the dark web someone’s bank account credentials, phone number, and name. The service would initiate an automated phone call to the target to alert them to supposed unauthorized activity on their account. The phone call would prompt the target to enter the OTP that they received via SMS text that the scammers initiated when they tried to log into the account. Any codes that were transmitted via the phone call were shared with the scammers to complete the log in process.

For more detail about both cases check out the links below.

 

BBC:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cr7rxpdyz9yo

 

Krebs on Security:

https://krebsonsecurity.com/2024/09/owners-of-1-time-passcode-theft-service-plead-guilty/

 

 

 

 

 

SCAM PACS – Fraudsters Take Advantage of Election Build Up

With the 2024 election campaigns in full gear, as usual, scammers find a way to take advantage of the situation to skim off some cash for themselves.

Election campaigns can be high energy and emotional, especially in this era of polarized politics. Scammers are adept at quickly establishing their false credentials to appeal for financial help, as in charity scams, for a worthy cause whipping up their victims’ emotions to pay right away because the cause needs their help now.

Scammers have migrated the charity scam model to elections by claiming to be a Political Action Committee (PAC) backing or opposing a candidate or cause. Legitimate PAC’s back candidates or causes spending no more than 25% of their donations on fund raising and administrative costs with the rest going to advertising and other techniques that promote their candidate or cause.

Scam PACs find ways to mask the pocketing of their donations to the organizers by distributing the funds to vendors which are owned by the organizers. And often, Scam PACs spend more than 25% of their donations on fund raising and administrative costs.

The Federal Election Commission (FEC) regulates PACs supporting or working to defeat candidates for federal office. In Washington State, the Public Disclosure Commission (PDA) regulates candidate committees, political committees, lobbyists, and lobbyist employers. Scam PACs may or may not register with the FEC and/or the PDC. Those that do not are obviously PACs to stay away from Those that do, may give an indication in their financial filings that they may be not as legitimate or as efficient in their operations as they would like you to think they are.

Verify. Like with charities, if you feel motivated to donate to a PAC take a deep breath and verify that the PAC is legitimate before you send money. Make sure the PAC is registered with the FEC or the PDA. If they are, take a look at their financial filings and see where they spend their money. Is more than 25% going to administrative costs? See who the PAC uses for vendors. Are the vendor’s registration addresses the same as for the PAC? If so, then the PAC may be a scam. Check the PAC’s website. Legitimate PACs should have one. Check for the person who heads the PAC. Websites that do not have the names and contact information of people running the PAC or the contact information for the PAC may be a scam. Check the contact phone number for the PAC. Is it in service? If not, it may be a scam. Look up PACs at,

            Federal Election Commission: https://www.fec.gov/

            Public Disclosure Commission: https://www.pdc.wa.gov/

Open Secrets: https://www.opensecrets.org/

 

Emotion. We have strong emotions about our politics during this election campaign. Scammers know how to play on our emotions to get us to act without thinking. And they will put the pressure on to act now, without doing your research.

Name confusion. While PACs can be associated with legitimate nonprofit organizations and campaigns, scam PACs may have names that closely mimic ongoing candidate political campaigns or ongoing issue campaigns. All the more reason to research the PAC to determine its legitimacy.

Phishing attempts. Scam PACs use similar methods to contact potential donors as legitimate political campaigns and a wide variety of scam efforts. If you receive an email or text message that purports to represent a candidate or a PAC, be careful of any links that may be embedded in the message. Don’t click on the link. Find the PAC’s website with a web search or look it up on the FEC website or the PDA website. If you get a phone call, don’t call the call back phone number. Look it up on a web search.

Election cybersecurity tips. Scammers can pretend to be pollsters. Some tricks that scam pollsters use include prizes to encourage completing surveys, ask for personal information such as birth dates, social security numbers, or financial information, information legitimate pollsters do not need.

Voter registration. Registering to vote is an important part of the election process. Sometimes scammers will call and offer voter registration. No state offers voter registration by phone! To learn about how to register to vote in Washington State check out this link at the Secretary of State’s website-  https://www.sos.wa.gov/elections#voters

For more information about Scam PACs and more tips to avoid being victimized by Scam PACs checkout the following links.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Verify:

https://www.verifythis.com/article/news/verify/elections-verify/political-text-message-donation/67-02737021-fc72-4d18-b18b-b7c237401d3d

 

“Political Parasites: How Scam PACs Cheat Us” report by the office of Representative Katie Porter (D, CA):

https://porter.house.gov/uploadedfiles/final_scampacsreport_december2023.pdf

 

Better Business Bureau:

https://www.bbb.org/article/news-releases/27597-political-scams-increase-as-elections-near

 

Open Secrets:

https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2023/08/how-scam-pacs-line-their-pockets-by-deceiving-political-donors/

 

FBI:

https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/scam-pacs-are-on-the-rise-041521

 

Charity Watch

https://www.charitywatch.org/charity-donating-articles/scam-pacs-are-on-the-rise-dont-confuse-them-for-legitimate-charities

 

AARP:

https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/info-2019/scam-pacs.html

 

 

 

HIKING SAFETY – Being Safe in Wildfire Season

We still have good weather ahead to enjoy a hike in the mountains. With our dry summers there is an increasing danger of wildfires in our national parks and national forests. Eastern Washington often sees wildfires. Currently, there are more than a dozen wildfires burning in Eastern Washington. With our drier summers, there is an increased danger of wildfires in Western Washington with drier fuels available in the forests.

Hikers could get caught in the mountains with wildfires as related to The Seattle Times by Matt Bishop and Steve Cooper who were hiking in the Baring Mountain area on the day that the Bolt Creek wildfire broke in September 2022- https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/climate-lab/it-was-a-classic-day-for-a-hike-in-was-cascades-then-the-fire-came/. The two ended up self-rescuing themselves after contacting search and rescue who determined that conditions were too dangerous to send ground teams or even a helicopter to pick them up. While there was no indication of a fire starting in the area that day, their story emphasizes the importance of preparation and being flexible to be able to handle unexpected events or conditions.

Some precautions to take to avoid a wildfire on your hike are:

·         Check with the National Weather Service for Red Flag Warnings along your intended route. And check with the Environmental Protection Agency for the air quality (AQI- Air Quality Index).

·         Also, check with the National Forest or National Parks for the conditions along your hiking route. The Washington Trails Association has a list of ranger stations at https://www.wta.org/go-outside/ranger-station-info

When you go on your hike be ready for anything. Even if the weather is perfect and there are no wildfires near your route, things can happen that can cause an emergency or cause a need to stay on the trail overnight. Taking the 10 Essentials can help survive the unexpected. For any hike, you should take,

·         NAVIGATION – Map, compass, and GPS system

·         SUN PROTECTION – Sunglasses, sunscreen, and hat

·         INSULATION – Jacket, hat, gloves, rain shell, and thermal underwear

·         ILLUMINATION – Flashlight, lanterns, and headlamp

·         FIRST-AID SUPPLIES – First Aid Kit

·         FIRE – Matches, lighter and fire starters

·         REPAIR KIT AND TOOLS – Duct tape, knife, screwdriver, and scissors

·         NUTRITION – Food

·         HYDRATION – Water and water treatment supplies

·         EMERGENCY SHELTER – Tent, space blanket, tarp, and bivy

 

Being prepared will help you to handle and survive the unexpected.

 

 

High Country News:

https://www.hcn.org/issues/55-8/north-wildfire-we-have-fire-all-around-us-and-we-cant-get-out-hikers/

 

National Weather Service:

https://www.weather.gov/sew/

 

Environmental Protection Agency- Air Now:

https://www.airnow.gov/

 

IQAir:

https://www.iqair.com/usa/washington/seattle

 

The 10 Essentials:

 

National Park Service- https://www.nps.gov/articles/10essentials.htm

 

Washington Trails Association- https://www.wta.org/go-outside/trail-smarts/ten-essentials

 

The Seattle Times:

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/climate-lab/how-to-hike-safely-during-pnw-wildfire-season-the-10-essentials/?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=owned_echobox_tw_m&utm_source=Twitter&s=09#Echobox=1723221742-1

https://www.seattletimes.com/life/outdoors/on-a-45-mile-chain-of-wa-trails-our-writer-got-more-than-bargained-for/

https://www.seattletimes.com/pacific-nw-magazine/a-behind-the-scenes-look-at-the-life-saving-work-of-the-puget-sound-coast-guard/