Get Rich Quick Scams

Back on January 23, 2013, AP Police reported to residents on a new phone/fraud scam taking place in Aransas Pass, Texas. The scam attempted to target vulnerable people interested in winning a large sum of money with a small upfront expense to the victim. Victims would be instructed to purchase prepaid credit cards at Wal-Mart and then turn the credit card information over to the fraudster. You can read all the details as reported here.

This scam re-emerged again on Thursday 02/07/2013. This time, however, the victim was no so lucky and actually lost a large sum of money. Again, we urge our residents to be cautious when dealing with a get-rich-quick kind of deal. At the first onset of suspicion, feel free to contact your local police department, we would love to help protect you from becoming the next victim.

Additionally, on Thursday 02/07/2013, it was reported to the police department by a local AP resident that a new ID Theft scam had surfaced. The resident reported receiving calls from area code #302 out of Delaware. The system asked if the resident wanted to opt-out of receiving these types of calls. The resident chose to opt-out and was then asked to enter her social security number to confirm her identity and her opt-out request. The resident immediately recognized this scam and hung up. A short while later, the call was returned and the resident was prompted if she “really, really” wanted to opt-out she would need to enter her social security number to confirm her identity. Again, the resident hung up.

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The resident asked what she could do to stop or report these types of scams. Great question!

1. All fraud crimes and identity theft crimes, get reported to the Federal Trade Commission. You can visit their fraud website and learn more about common scams affecting people at http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/scam-alerts.  You can event sign up for scam alerts which are sent out by email.
2. File a report with the FTC through their online reporting form at https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/ or by phone at 1-877-FTC-HELP.
3. Register your numbers with the National Do Not Call Registry at https://www.donotcall.gov/, or by calling 1-888-382-1222.
4. If the scam falls into another category, file a report with the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force at http://www.stopfraud.gov/report.html. This website will make sure your complaint goes to the proper agency with jurisdiction over the scam you’re experiencing.

If you would like to learn more about this type of fraud scam and many others, visit the FBI’s online page at http://www.fbi.gov/scams-safety/fraud or http://www.stopfraud.gov, and again, you can always call upon us here at the Aransas Pass Police Department.

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