Everyday it seems, we hear or read phrases like, "Congratulations! You won!" and "Make thousands from the comfort of your own home!" More often than not, they're tag lines used by fraudsters and scammers to get into your wallet. National Fraud Awareness Week in August is a good time to review some of the most popular scams out there today.

Best of the Worst

Pay Day or "check loans," where you pay a fee and a very high interest rate to borrow some money "until your next paycheck." Penalties follow if you don't pay back on time, and interest builds if you extend or "roll over" the loan. There's even a scam where people claim to be pay day loan collectorswho threaten to have borrowers arrested if they pay the collectors or give them bank account numbers. 

Advance-Fee Loans or credit involves a lender "guaranteeing" you a loan or a credit card, regardless of your credit rating or
history. The trick is, you're asked to pay a fee up front just to get loan application or you get a debit rather than a credit card.

Work At Home. There are all sorts of these. You may be asked to pay for a pamphlet of work-at-home job opportunities, or the job may require you to pay for supplies, training materials, or newspaper ads. And, you may work several days in a row without being paid or you may have to work 10-12 hours a day.

FBI Scams. The most widely complained of internet scam in 2009 involved various tactics by scammers claiming to be FBI agents. For instance, scammers sent victims emails concerning an official "investigation" to get the victims to divulge personal information, like bank account and social security numbers.

Car Warranties. Companies use high-pressure sales tactics to convince you to buy an "extended warranty" for your car, claiming the warranties are from the car manufacturer. In fact, the companies aren't affiliated with the car makers, the "warranties" sold often don't cover what they're claimed to cover, and they cost thousands of dollars.

Stimulus Money. Victims are urged by emails to act quickly and register at a web site for money from the federal government under the Stimulus Package. Victims divulge personal information and pay a $28 fee, but they don't get any money from the government.

Donation and Fundraising Scams. Millions of Americans lose billions of dollars to scammers and fraudsters who ask for money for a worthy cause, but the money never makes it to the people who need it.

Foreign Lottery Scams. You're told you won millions of dollars in a lottery or sweepstakes in a foreign country, and you're asked to send some money to process your claim. You pay, but never get any money. Or, you're asked for your bank account number so the money can be wired into it. That doesn't happen, either, but scammers now have your bank account number.

Computer Virus Scam. Here, you get an official-looking pop-up message on your screen warning that your computer has a virus. It urges you to run a scan. Actually, your computer wasn't infected, and you're duped into buying security software. Or worse, you activate a program sent by the scammers that allows them to access your computer and all the sensitive, personal information stored on it.

These are just a few of the scams and frauds you may run into. There are many more, and you can be certain new ones are hatched everyday.

What You Can Do

Here's what to do to protect yourself:

  • Be wary of any offer involving mailing or wire transferring money
  • Don't give anyone you don't know and trust your social security, bank account, or credit card numbers
  • Check with your local Better Business Bureau about any charity you've never heard of before
  • If you're the victim of a scam, or if you've received a suspicious offer, file a complaint with the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), or your state attorney general

It's your money. Do everything you can to protect it.

Questions for Your Attorney

  • Can you help me get my money back if I'm the victim of scam?
  • Should I file a police report if I've been the victim of scam?
  • Does my credit card company have to credit my account if I donated to a scam charity?