Local insurance company warns community about IRS
scams. A local Steger resident received
a call saying that he did not pay his taxes and police would be arresting him
soon. He went to the Steger Police
Department and gave them the number to call.
The police traced the call to a McDonald’s in Washington D.C.
Remember, the IRS
does not call you outright in this manner.
All communication from the IRS begin with a letter to your home. In this way you contact them directly to
clear up any discrepancy. The IRS does
not operate in the function of quickly arresting people. All processes must go through the court
system and if anyone found to be in extreme violation a warrant would be issued
for a person’s arrest which would be served by a county Sheriff’s Police
Officer.
BE ON THE ALERT
as tax returns will be filed, there is an increased in scams of all types. Protect your filing status and identity
carefully this tax season. Other tricks
follow below.
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| Not all Thieves Are This Obvious |
6 Current Scams Popping Up in Your
Area
It is simply a shame that such things even exist. You wonder
why someone would put the effort into hurting someone, instead of putting the
effort into making an honest living. Following are six common scams we are
seeing in this area. Please make others aware because when people catch on,
PREVENTION ruins the scam artist’s game.
1. Predator Targets Senior Citizen – An
elderly person gets a phone call that a loved one is in trouble. They need to
send a “money gram” right away to help. The trouble could be a false arrest,
car breaking down while “out of town on an emergency,” they were beat up and
dropped in an unfamiliar area, incurring expenses for help and now they need to
get home, etc. The stories are endless but the pattern is the same; create panic (which causes confusion), seed a story (that tugs on the love
strings) and can’t be verified, and prey
on the person’s natural instinct to help.
A local woman recently received such a phone call from her supposed nephew;
he gave his name and made references to family members. Speaking to her in her
most used language in Spanish, he succeeded in creating panic. He would call
back with information where to wire the money. Her son happened to stop by just
then and she told him what happened. Suspecting something, her son waited for
the phone call. When it came, he spoke briefly with the supposed nephew and
then told the man on the other end that he was calling the police. The call
ended abruptly. He later explained to his mother, “Mom didn’t you realize that
your nephew doesn’t speak fluent Spanish?” She knew this well, but in “panic”
mode; the thought of her nephew in danger would have moved her to do anything.
Scammers know to create confusion, so logic gets dumped.
2. Concert or Event
Tickets – This is a growing trend with two different endings. A consumer orders and pays for tickets for a
concert or event; either they never come in or the tickets are fake ones. The
Chicago Better Business Bureau reported that 32,000 consumers have contacted
them in the past 12 months for pre-purchase information about ticket
sales/event companies.
3. Door to Door Scams – The most common
door to door scam can include magazine subscription sales, meat sales, “free”
energy audits, outdoor home maintenance, medical wellness checks and voter
surveys. Many of these lead to identity theft.
The BBB recommends: when in doubt keep strangers out!
4. Moving Companies – There are many good
ones out there. Beware of the ones looking to take more than your belongings
for a ride. 2013 showed an increase in unlicensed and dishonest scammers, the
BBB received over 1.6 million moving related inquiries and 7,900 complaints
including lost or stolen belongings, damaged items, significant price increase
over quoted estimate, late deliveries and goods being “held hostage” for
additional payment.
5. Travel Scams – direct mail offers for
trips and cruises including look-a-like boarding passes and travelers checks.
Some offers claim to include free airfare and destination vacations by simply
calling a 1-800 number. Watch out for slick talkers, there are often hidden
fees ALWAYS read the fine print.
6.
Seasonal Job Scams - A tell-tale sign
of these scams are fake postings that offer unusually high pay for little or no
effort. Some use fake interviews or job fairs that require payment by you in
order to get the job. Never pay to get a position. Beware of commission only
jobs, keep in mind seasonal job scams are often a front to steal your identity.
Scam Protection Alert brought to you by
Jeff Sopko Insurance Agency
