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The AARP Fraud Watch Network has issued a
warning to Publishers Clearing House (PCH) players about scammers calling,
emailing, sending letters and using social media to people and claiming that
they have won the “$5,000-a-week-forever” prize. The trick is the scammers want
some money up front for you to “claim” your prize. The sweepstakes will be
awarded on February 26. Remember, if you
did not enter, you did not win. And if you did enter the PCH sweepstakes, the
winner will be notified by the PCH team, Prize Patrol van and all, in person,
just like in their advertising. For smaller prizes, usually less than $1,000,
the company says that it notifies winners via overnight delivery services,
certified mail, or email, not by phone, text messages, Facebook, emails (for
major prizes), or “regular” USPS delivered letters. For more about this scam go
to:
o
AARP Fraud Watch Network: http://blog.aarp.org/2016/01/08/dont-lose-in-winning-publishers-clearing-house-prizes/?cmp=SN-FCBK-ADV&sf43738706=1
o
Publishers Clearing House: http://blog.pch.com/blog/2013/04/05/5-ways-to-know-if-its-a-publishers-clearing-house-scam/
o
Here is an example of how PCH delivers the news
to a lucky winner: http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2015/03/watch_alabama_woman_react_to_a.html
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Apparently young, new drivers are posting
pictures of their first driver’s licenses on social media such as Facebook to
show that they have made it one more step to adulthood. By doing so however,
they leave themselves open to ID thieves collecting their names, addresses,
dates of birth, ID numbers, and signatures. ID theft against children is major
problem that usually is not discovered until the child reaches adulthood and
begins to apply for loans, mortgages or an apartment. While earning a driver’s
license is an exciting time, encourage your child not to overshare their
personal information on social media.
o
Press Connects: http://www.pressconnects.com/story/news/connections/buzz/2016/01/05/keep-license-photos-off-social-media-dmv-warns/78306278/
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The AARP Fraud Watch Network also suggests that
to get a good start to 2016 that you take some practical measures to prevent ID
theft. Freezing your credit, checking your credit report, thinking before you
act, being less social on social media, cleaning your wallet, and regularly
changing your passwords, will help you to protect your identity. For more
detail, go to:
o
AARP Fraud Watch Network: http://blog.aarp.org/2016/01/01/scam-proof-2016-with-these-7-simple-steps/?cmp=SN-FCBK-ADV-XX
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Scammers use any tools that they can to take
your money including the phone, at your door, and online. They can get your
phone number or email by purchasing them from companies that sell this kind of
data, purchasing a “sucker list” from other scammers of people who have fallen
for scams, or from giveaways, sweepstakes, or surveys that people voluntarily
sign up for. For more information on specific scams going around, go to:
o
AARP Fraud Watch Network: http://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/info-2015/scams-and-frauds-to-avoid.html?intcmp=BUBB3
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Phishing is a technique that tries to get you to
click on a link embedded in an email that will download malware into your
computer or take you to a web site that asks for your personal information. The
Better Business Bureau (BBB) is warning businesses and colleges about a
phishing scam that claims to protect you from phishing scams. When you are at
work, you might receive an email that appears to be from your IT department
with a subject line similar to “Mailbox Helpdesk” and saying that “new security
updates need to be performed on our servers, due to the rate of phishing.” To receive
the update, all you have to do is to click on the link. The BBB says don’t do
it! The link will download malware to your computer. For tips on how to avoid
the phishing scam, go to:
o
Better Business Bureau: http://www.bbb.org/blog/2015/12/how-a-scam-email-claims-to-protect-from-scam-emails/
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