Guest column: Amazon impersonation scams run rampant
From July 2020 to June 2021, 96,000 people reported an Amazon scam to the FTC. Only a small percentage of people report scams, so the actual numbers are much higher.
Topic: Better Business Bureau Of The Mid-South
RSSThere are 65 article(s) tagged Better Business Bureau Of The Mid-South:
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April 2022
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November 2021
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BBB: Reverse mortgages need thorough scrutiny
Opinion: Even Tom Selleck would agree it’s important to carefully consider all the pros and cons of a reverse mortgage.
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September 2021
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Opinion: Do your research when buying home security system
More than 6,900 people filed a complaint about home security companies in 2020, ranking them No. 32 among the thousands of types of businesses receiving complaints.
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August 2021
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Opinion: Do your homework when considering multilevel marketing
Even if an MLM opportunity is legitimate, AARP and the FTC say most participants still make little or no money.
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July 2021
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Opinion: Businesses should beware of predatory lenders
Some companies may have a short-term cash flow crunch that makes them vulnerable to deceptive lending practices.
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Opinion: Weekly credit reports are free
You want to be sure that your credit information is accurate and current before you apply for a loan, buy insurance, apply for a job, or try to rent an apartment or other housing.
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June 2021
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Opinion: Do your due diligence before buying overseas real estate
The FTC and BBB recommend discussing with experts plans to invest in any real estate development outside the U.S.
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May 2021
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Opinion: Scam calls and texts on the rise
RoboKiller predicts that scammers will design even smarter, more believable phone scams in the future. Spam calls could reach 70 billion and texts 90 billion by the end of 2021.
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April 2021
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Opinion: The Nigerian prince scam has grown more sophisticated
Nigerian letter scams now reap only $700,000 annually, but the same crooks get billions of dollars from more sophisticated scams: ‘That Nigerian prince has grown up, has gone to college, and has found a new, lucrative career,’ says an expert.
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February 2021
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Opinion: Beware of ever-evolving COVID scams
The variety of COVID-19 scams we’ve seen since the beginning of the pandemic are overwhelming.
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October 2020
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Data breaches in 2020: up or down?
Some of the biggest breaches include one at Marriott that affected over 5 million customers and one at Nintendo that compromised 300,000 user accounts. At least five state unemployment databases have been hacked.
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August 2020
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BBB: Don’t fall for a mortgage relief scam
According to Black Knight, a mortgage technology and data provider, mortgage delinquencies almost doubled in April. That’s fodder for mortgage relief scammers.
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July 2020
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Cryptocurrency scams are on the rise
Consumers who were exposed to a cryptocurrency scam were far more likely to fall for it and lost far more money than the average for all scams. The median loss in a cryptocurrency scam was $3,000 compared to $160 for all scams.
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May 2020
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Kids more vulnerable online during pandemic
The FBI issued an alert warning that with schools closed and other activities curtailed, children spending more time at home and online are at greater risk.
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April 2020
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Seniors more vulnerable to scams during pandemic
In today’s coronavirus crisis, crooks impersonating the government promise seniors government grants and stimulus payments in exchange for an upfront fee or confidential information they’ll use to commit identity theft.
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March 2020
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BBB: Here come the coronavirus scams
In its first coronavirus-related fraud case, the Department of Justice shut down the website “coronavirusmedicalkit.com” that offered consumers a World Health Organization vaccine kit. There are currently no legitimate vaccines.
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Beware: Rental scams are rampant
A BBB investigations specialist estimated that more than 5 million consumers have lost money to rental scams. The average loss reported was $996.
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February 2020
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Don’t let a bad vendor ruin your wedding
There’s no second chance with a wedding, so brides and grooms and parents need to do their due diligence in choosing vendors.
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‘Smishing’ fraud targets First Horizon customers
The Better Business Bureau says a new smishing campaign is using bogus text messages to gain confidential information on First Horizon Bank customers.
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January 2020
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BBB: Scammers exploit Kobe Bryant’s death
Fake videos of Bryant’s helicopter crash have already shown up on YouTube and other websites, although it’s not clear if they’re nefarious or just cruel hoaxes.
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Be sure Internet-connected security cameras are secure
Four days after a DeSoto County couple installed a Ring system, their 8-year old daughter heard a man talking in her bedroom. The father disabled the system to stop the harassment and the couple is now dealing with their kids’ trauma.
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October 2019
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Report finds military consumers more at risk than others
The top industry generating complaints from military consumers for six years in a row is new car dealers. Service members also encounter more struggles than the general public in home-related needs because they move, on average, every two to four years.
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August 2019
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Vet a crowdfunding campaign before contributing
Crowdfunding platforms have rules for what kinds of projects can be posted on their website and vet them to some degree, but they don’t guarantee success. As with any new product, there are risks that include delays in completing a project or failure to bring a product to market at all.
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July 2019
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MLGW, BBB issue warnings about utility scam
Scammers pretending to be from Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division are targeting people in the Memphis area and threatening to cut off their service.
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Ransomware can cripple organizations of all sizes
In 2017, the largest simultaneous ransomware attack ever affected tens of thousands of organizations in 74 countries, including FedEx’ Memphis operations. Collierville's town computer system was the target of a ransomware attack in July.
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