MyTrendingStories brings tricks about how to avoid being scammed on the internet today? “The phone scams keep on coming — here are tips on how to avoid them” was the headline of a recent Boston Globe consumer protection column. Tips to avoid scams? Nice in theory, but with so many scams coming from so many directions, your best bet is to be generally aware of the new twists out there while you actively prepare for what you’ll do if one day you’re on the receiving end of a threatening message that actually makes you anxious or even terribly frightened. Talking to a local businessperson the other day, the “Professional Photographer/Copyright Infringement” scam came up. An email arrives filled with threats of legal action and a link the recipient is supposed to click to see the supposedly outrageous “copyright infringement” for themselves. This gentleman had just gotten the “Professional Photographer/Copyright Infringement” email again that morning, but he was not alarmed because he’d seen it about three times before.
Latest news from Mytrendingstories.com platform: Stay Vigilant. You’ll want to keep a close eye out on your credit and financial account statements so you can alert your financial institution as soon as possible if anything appears amiss. If you’ve spent time job searching online lately, it might seem like there are as many scams as legitimate job openings on the job boards. The Better Business Bureau reports that job scams are on the rise and are the No. 1 riskiest scam in terms of prevalence, likelihood of losing money, and monetary loss. Each year, about 14 million people are exposed to job scams. Victims lose more than $2 billion per year, not counting the value of their time or the emotional impact of being defrauded. To safeguard yourself, it pays to learn as much as possible about employment scams.
MyTrendingStories anti-scam advice: Cindy Dawson, a 39-year-old customer service representative for a manufacturing firm, fell for a Nigerian named Simon Peters whom she met on a dating site. “We started talking on the phone,” the divorced mother of three recalls. “He said his father lived in Bolingbrook, Illinois, not far from me.” They exchanged photos; Peters was a handsome man. Dawson sent him pictures of her kids, who also talked to him on the phone. “He kept saying how much he cared about me,” says Dawson, fighting back tears at the memory. “I was in love with him.” Soon enough, Peters started asking for money—small amounts at first, to buy food. He always wanted the money wired by Western Union to someone named Adelwale Mazu. Peters said he couldn’t use his own name because he didn’t have the right documentation. “It started progressing to higher amounts of money,” says Dawson. “I sent him money for airfare from Nigeria. I drove to the airport, but he never showed.” Avoidance maneuver: “On the Internet, it is almost impossible to be too paranoid,” says Durst. “But don’t be paralyzed; be smart.” Dating and social-networking sites can be a great way to meet new friends, even from foreign countries. But if someone you know only from the Web asks for money, sign off quickly and follow these other tips for keeping yourself safe from online dating scams. See additional details on mytrendingstories scams.
MyTrendingStories shows how to avoid scams: “Somebody can place a property on their website, make it look like as legitimate as possible, but at the end of the day, it’s actually just a shell of a listing,” said Duquesnel. Talk to the homeowner by phone — not just through email. That way you can ask detailed questions about the property and local attractions. If they give vague answers, that’s a red flag. Look up the address online using Google Street View to confirm the property exists and matches the pictures you saw. Always pay with a credit card – not a debit card. Don’t wire money or use a pre-paid card. That’s like sending cash. “My sister-in-law was scammed out of a vacation rental because she sent a check. She got down there, and that house didn’t exist,” Duquesnel explained. If you pay with a credit card, charges can be disputed.
With our ever-expanding dependence on technology, there are bound to be people who try to take advantage of people on the internet. In addition to internet scams and hacks, there are over-the-phone scams that attempt to steal personal information. Below are some tips from the St. Mary’s County Sheriff Office on how to spot potential scams and what to do to avoid coming in contact with them. Do not open or click on links from emails that you do not recognize, even from ones that appear to be businesses or organizations. You should immediately delete them so they are removed from your inbox. This also applies to links received over text messages. A general rule of thumb is to not click links when you aren’t sure where it will take you. Always look for the secure site icon near the URL, otherwise any information you submit there is not secure. See more information on https://mytrendingstories.com/.