Scams

[jcole]

They try to make it appear to be an actual invoice but it's cut and pasted into the email and fairly obvious. I had an example but now I can't find it.
It would look something like this

Okay, thanks.

Just to make sure I understand, do you mean that a jpeg of text would be a red flag? Yes. Any legitimate system would just produce text.

[Jimaz]

That makes sense.

The generic "Hello Customer" salutation gives it away too.

[jcole]

Notice the email address also: .art And no street numbers

That makes sense.

The generic "Hello Customer" salutation gives it away too.

[jcole]

New email scam; beware. Note the return email address on the upper left

[Jimaz]

'It's being held for ransom.'
Driver stuck in I-696 pileup hit with $9,000 towing bill

A driver caught in Sunday’s snow squall on I-696 that led to a vehicle pileup was hit with a $9,000 towing bill from a company she says she didn’t call.

[Jimaz]

Several months ago there were stories floating around warning people to expect coffee shortages because of crop failures.

More recently a story appeared saying that there would be no shortage because of a bumper crop in 2020 that was warehoused.

So which is it? Oops, our highly-paid professional analysts made a mistake?

I have to wonder whether some attorney general investigated for possible profiteering, ultimately giving some coffee mogul a choice between being investigated further or gracefully unwinding a scam to avoid some bad press.

We'll never know.

[Jimaz]

AG Nessel Warns Consumers About Gas Gouging

Attorney General Nessel is warning consumers about gas gouging. If you have information about potential gas gouging, visit michigan.gov/ag or call 877-765-8388.

• AG Nessel Shares New Video with Focus on Gas Gouging

This initiative is said to be a precaution against possible price gouging due to the Ukraine situation.

[jcole]

She has another phone scam one too, with the same people. I wonder if they really are her parents

[Jimaz]

That one's funny too.

AG Nessel: Don't Fall For Robocalls

... Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel educates her parents on robocalls when they're told by a stranger that their car warranty is expiring. Visit mi.gov/robocalls for more information on how to spot and stop these scams.

[Jimaz]

Scam warning issued in Farmington Hills after men pose as water department employees, steal items from home

Farmington Hills Police Chief Jeff King is reminding residents to refuse entry to anyone who arrives at your home unexpectedly or presents information that may seem suspicious.

[Jimaz]

It's not just Wells Fargo opening fake accounts for their customers.

Another Bank Caught Opening Fake Accts w/Customer Money

[Gistok]

I've gotten to the point where if I get a phone call from a number I do not recognize, I NEVER pick it up. If they wanted to have a return phone call, and are legit, then they will leave a message. If not, it's likely phone SPAM.

By the same token, if I get a warning about an Amazon, Ebay or other purchase that they are confirming... then I log into my account to see if there is any activity that I did not authorize [there never is].

And lastly, I check my online bank account status about every 3 days, just to confirm all is well.

I miss the good old days of just getting Emails from Nigerian bank widows that want to share $12 million with me. [A few years ago there must have been a Nigerian banker epidemic that decimated their financial systems! ]

[Jimaz]

If Healthcare Were Honest

What if hospitals and health insurance companies like UnitedHealth Group, Anthem, Aetna, Cigna, Humana, and others were actually honest about how horrifically terrible they are? Roger Horton investigates.

[Jimaz]

Norton LifeLock says thousands of customer accounts breached

Thousands of Norton LifeLock customers had their accounts compromised in recent weeks, potentially allowing criminal hackers access to customer password managers, the company revealed in a recent data breach notice....

The notice was sent to customers that it believes use its password manager feature, because the company cannot rule out that the intruders also accessed customers’ saved passwords....

Yeah, as if a password manager that stores all your passwords wouldn't come inherently equipped with a big fat target on it. LOL!

That whole concept was suspicious from the beginning.

[Ray1936]

I fell for an email scam a couple years back. Email said I had a refund coming of 4.99. Like a yahoo, I clicked on it and gave them the info they wanted. Viola, my savings account took a 3k hit. Fortunately, my delightful bank clerk traced it down and reimbursed my account. Thank you, Nevada State Bank!!!!

[Lowell]

Yeah, as if a password manager that stores all your passwords wouldn't come inherently equipped with a big fat target on it. LOL!

That whole concept was suspicious from the beginning.

Beyond having a unique login for every site, which password managers make easy, critical logins, like financials, should never be left complete in a password manager. Users should have to manually complete them.

[jcole]

One of the employees I work with was smart enough to bring me the email he received with a link in it for Norton Lifelock renewal and told me I needed to address it. I told him thanks but we don't use Norton.

Norton LifeLock says thousands of customer accounts breached



Yeah, as if a password manager that stores all your passwords wouldn't come inherently equipped with a big fat target on it. LOL!

That whole concept was suspicious from the beginning.

[Jimaz]

ATM thieves use glue and 'tap' function to drain accounts at Chase Bank

[Jimaz]

Now they're using computers to mimic the distressed voice of someone the victim knows hoping to get the victim to send money.

Has it become so hard to make an honest living that they have to resort to this?

[jcole]

Here's a new one; apparently I have contracted Geek Squad for 5 yrs for some unknown reason. Interesting that they email address is a gmail addy and not Best Buy and that their address is Globe Drive, United States.

[Jimaz]

...Geek Squad....

Yes, I've been getting those too — more often just recently. I think they're using the Geek Squad name to filter out the technically adept leaving the more technically flustered folks to be scammed. I heard somewhere they're getting better at playing on people's emotions.

---

I once had a phone call from someone affiliated with Comcast {a subcontractor, I suspect}. They said my contract was ending soon and my rates would go up but as compensation they'd give me some additional service for free. I had no need for the new service but hey, it's free, right?

No. I later learned that my rates would not have gone up. They simply tacked the cost of the "free" service onto my old rate, effectively selling me something I didn't want or need and couldn't even use. I was soon able to back out of the deal. {Maybe this had to do with Michigan's 3-day buyer's remorse law on contracts? IDK}

The next time Comcast called I told them I'll only deal with them through the U.S. Mail. That way if they want to scam me, they'll have to risk committing mail fraud too.

They haven't contacted me since. «ding!»

[jcole]

I just dropped Comcast cable last month. They sent me a "free" flex box which operates like a smart tv for streaming but only what Comcast Xfinity wants you to stream. You get "free" Peacock, but only the basic.I did a bit of research and discovered it streams in 4K, which would have eaten my 1.2tb internet up in about a week. I ended up going unlimited for an extra 20 bucks a month rather than get caught paying for overage. These cable companies have figured out how to work with losing TV customers by giving them "free" equipment for streaming.

Yes, I've been getting those too — more often just recently. I think they're using the Geek Squad name to filter out the technically adept leaving the more technically flustered folks to be scammed. I heard somewhere they're getting better at playing on people's emotions.

---

I once had a phone call from someone affiliated with Comcast {a subcontractor, I suspect}. They said my contract was ending soon and my rates would go up but as compensation they'd give me some additional service for free. I had no need for the new service but hey, it's free, right?

No. I later learned that my rates would not have gone up. They simply tacked the cost of the "free" service onto my old rate, effectively selling me something I didn't want or need and couldn't even use. I was soon able to back out of the deal. {Maybe this had to do with Michigan's 3-day buyer's remorse law on contracts? IDK}

The next time Comcast called I told them I'll only deal with them through the U.S. Mail. That way if they want to scam me, they'll have to risk committing mail fraud too.

They haven't contacted me since. «ding!»

[Jimaz]

If Cruises Were Honest

What if cruises were honest about your floating vacation? Roger Horton investigates.

[Jimaz]

How ‘Junk’ Fees Secretly Invaded The U.S. Economy
{And How Pres. Biden Wants To Stop Them}

Americans are collectively spending nearly $65 billion on sneaky fees, according to the White House. “It really seems like companies have become addicted to junk fees,” Lina Khan, chair of the Federal Trade Commission, told CNBC. Junk fees are making companies billions of dollars richer....

• KillResortFees.com

[Ray1936]

Wanna see a ton of junk fees? Come visit Las Vegas and check into a hotel. There's a ton of them. Course, then, I live there and own my home, so I just benefit from the tourists by way of lower taxes.