Counterfeit Check Scheme Targeting US Law Firms In a new twist, the fraudulent client seeking legal representation is an ex-wife "on assignment" in an Asian country, and she claims to be pursuing a collection of divorce settlement monies from her ex-husband in the U.S. The law firm agrees to represent the ex-wife, sends an e-mail to the ex-husband, and receives a "certified" check for the settlement via delivery service. The ex-wife instructs the firm to wire the funds, less the retainer fee, to an overseas bank account. When the scam is executed successfully, the law firm wires the money before discovering the check is counterfeit.
Hatain Earthquake Relief Fraud Alert The FBI today reminds Internet users who receive appeals to donate money in the aftermath of Tuesday's earthquake in Haiti to apply a critical eye and do their due diligence before responding to those requests.
Mystery/Secret Shopper Schemes Many retail and service corporations hire evaluators to perform secret or random checks on themselves or their competitors, and fraudsters are capitalizing on this employment opportunity.
Old Debts - Can they be collected? Old Debts (Everything EXCEPT child support, tax debts and student loans-they all have their own set of special rules!) Collectors depend on your lack of information about the law and not asking enough questions! Please talk to a lawyer about collection problems - a lawyer can tell you if you have a defense or when you may be giving up a legitimate defense to a collection action.
Personal FDIC Insurance File Email Scam E-mails fraudulently claiming to be from the FDIC try to trick you into installing unknown software on your computer. The emails ask you to open a "personal FDIC insurance file" to check your deposit insurance coverage." The "insurance file" may actually be a form of spyware or malicious code and may collect personal or confidential information.
Two Scams, Same Theme... Found lotto ticket The scam, as reported to police, involves the victim finding an unscratched 'scratch and win' lottery ticket on the ground. The ticket is typically found in a very public place, such as a mall or near a bank machine. Upon scratching the ticket, the victim learns that he has a "winning ticket."
"809" Phone Scam - Beware When you dial the "809", "284", "876" (or other three-digit) area code plus the number. In this case, "809" goes to the Dominican Republic, "284" goes to the British Virgin Islands, and "876" goes to Jamaica. You don't find out about the higher international call rates until you receive your phone bill.
50 States Reach Agreement with MySpace Attorney General Drew Edmondson and the attorneys general for 49 other states announced an agreement with social networking site MySpace that should help protect kids from Internet predators.
AG Petitions Court to Stop Deceptive Pill Sales A group of Internet pill peddlers may soon be forced to change their ways after Attorney General Drew Edmondson today filed a petition for a permanent injunction against the company in Oklahoma County District Court.
Area Codes to Avoid U.S. whose telephone numbers may look like domestic long-distance calls, but are actually international calls where international rates apply.
Asian Extortion Scheme The FBI is currently aware of a nationwide attempt to extort ethnic business owners, mostly of Asian descent, througth telephone threats.
Auto Service Warranty Company Closed Insurance Commissioner Kim Holland issues an Emergency Cease and Desist Order against VSI Vehicle Services Inc. for attempting to sell insurance products in violation of Oklahoma law, according to the order.
Avoiding E-mail Scams We all know them: The e-mails that come to you promising you weight loss, cases of fine champagne, and offers to erase all your fine lines and bad memories. Read this article on how they work and how you can avoid them!
Be Wary of Fraud Be wary of fraud. That is the warning issued to individuals and business owners affected by the Ice Storms from officials with the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management (OEM) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Beware of Scams: Get Your Economic Stimulus Payment Safely and Securely Where there is money, there are scam artists trying to get a piece of it, or potentially worse yet, to use the opportunity to steal your identity. This is a guide to help you steer clear of the con artists and get the money you are eligible for.
Foreclosure Rescue Conman This is the stuff that novels are made of – when pens will flow writing on the great foreclosure crisis raging across US today affecting the entire globe.
Heartland Data Breach Nearly two dozen banks have come forward so far and informed their customers that their credit or debit cards were among those compromised in the Heartland Payment Systems (HPY) breach in 2008.
Insurance Commissioner Targets Companies National Home Protection Inc., fails to respond to an Emergency Cease and Desist Order issued against the company for attempting to solicit insurance products in Oklahoma without a license, said Insurance Commissioner Kim Holland.
IRS Asks for Help Warning Immigrants About Scam The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in New York City to ask for help in warning immigrants about a scam. The scam instructs the victim to complete a fraudulent “IRS Request for Recertification of Foreign Status” form. The form requests biographical information typically used for identity theft. The IRS forwarded us the actual documents being used in this scam, which are attached to the bottom of this email.
IRS Refund/Audit Email Scam Refund/Audit E-mail Scam
The recipient is told he is eligible for a tax refund for a specific amount and is given instructions to click on a link in the e-mail to access a refund claim form.
Legal Aid Firm Swindled Poor, Suit Alleges Legal Aid National Services preyed on low-income people in 27 states and first operated in California, says the complaint filed in Denver.
Read the full article at this link: http://www.probono.net/link.cfm?9680
National Readers/Magazine Service Be careful with magazine subscriptions!
Someone using the name National Readers Magazine or Magazine Service has contacted people claiming to be dealing with 'your' magazine subscriptions.
OK Lottery warns of Scam “The Oklahoma Lottery does not use email for winner notifications,” said Jim Scroggins, executive director of the Oklahoma Lottery. “Please use caution when you receive such notifications, because there are numerous scams similar to this that are circulating.
Online Auction Fraud Don't Let it Happen to You
One in four complaints in 2008 to the Internet Crime Complaint Center involved online auction fraud. Learn more...
Scam Draws New Warning from OK Highway Patrol The Oklahoma Highway Patrol is warning state residents not to fall victim to a new telephone scam.
The patrol has received several calls from people who say they've received voice messages stating there has been a serious, sometimes fatal, vehicle accident and their phone number is on a cell phone found in the car, Capt. Chris West said.
The person is instructed to dial a sequence of numbers starting with *72.
According to AT&T, *72 is a custom feature for call forwarding that sends all calls to another phone number, including collect, long distance and other pay-service phone numbers.
Charges are placed on the forwarding customer's account, instead of to the phone from which the call originated.
Call forwarding may be canceled by dialing 73#.
Call forwarding is a subscription-only service.
Those who haven't requested the service don't have the ability to forward calls.
West said the scam has been reported in other states and anyone who gets such a call should report it to local law enforcement.
According to
by: NewsOK.com
Scheme Purportedly Announces Millionaire Contest The IC3 has been alerted to the circulation of a fraudulent e-mail, purportedly from the "The Oprah Winfrey Show", notifying recipients of their nomination for the "Oprah Millionaire Contest Show."
Standford Financial Group Under FBI Investigation Have you invested in the Stanford Financial Group or its affiliated companies in recent years? If so, you may be a victim of a multi-billion dollar investment fraud.
Telemarketer Restriction Act Consumer Registry The Oklahoma Telemarketer Restriction Act Consumer Registry lists the telephone numbers of Oklahomans who don't want unsolicited telemarketing calls and have properly registered with the Oklahoma Attorney General.
Tulsa Police Warn About Unsolicited Calls The Tulsa Police Department announced Wednesday that an organization is making unsolicited calls in the name of Tulsa Police Chief Ron Palmer.
Unsolicited Commercial Email Unsolicited Commercial Email or better known as "spam" or "junk email," has become a growing concern and nuisance to many consumers. An Oklahoma law passed in 2003 makes it illegal to send certain types of junk email. Although junk email can be frustrating, not all junk email qualifies as illegal under Oklahoma's law.
Who's Putting a Price on Free Legal Aid? Buyer beware! 'Domainers' are grabbing up or creating URL's that will be hit in web searches along with genuine legal aid groups.
Wichita, KS Woman Falls Victim to Legal Aid Scam By Kim Wilhelm (WICHITA, Kan.)
A Wichita woman wanted a divorce but ended up getting scammed. She thought she was going through a local organization but lost hundreds of dollars to an out-of-state fraudulent company.
Work at Home Job Scams Might be tempting during these uncertain economic times, but beware of any offers that promise easy money for minimum effort—many are scams that fill the coffers of criminals.
New E-Mail Scam Targets Lawyers NEW E-MAIL SCAM TARGETS LAWYERS
A new e-mail scam is making the rounds. Scammers are stealing lawyers’ signature blocks from e-mails and applying the information to fake e-mail addresses.
