Beware of ID theft scams, old and new

August 22, 2011 – 10:56 am

Some new scams, as well as revamped versions of some old ones, are making the rounds, and not just within the borders of the United States.

Military personnel in Afghanistan have reportedly been falling victim to a gem scam. Merchants in the country are selling fake gems to soldiers, telling them the gems can be resold in the U.S. for large profit. According to reports, the stones are fake, and are often not cut properly. If you have a loved one serving in Afghanistan, warn them of this scam so that they don’t get duped.

The sweepstakes scam isn’t anything new. It works like this: You get a call or e-mail telling you that you’ve won a lottery or sweepstakes prize, but you need to pay the taxes up front before you can claim your prize. Sounds like something no one would fall for, right?

But thousands of people have fallen for this scam, duped out of thousands of dollars. Before you fall for something like this, think about it logically – Can you really win a prize in a sweepstakes or lottery you never entered? And keep in mind, also, that any legitimate contest would not ask you to pay anything up front before you can claim your prize.

To protect yourself, don’t give your Social Security number to anyone in an unsolicited e-mail or on the phone, and don’t carry your SS card with you. In fact, don’t give any of your personal information to anyone unless you are sure of the person and how your information will be handled once it has been received. Make sure you shred any documents that contain your personal or financial information before you discard it, and check your bank and credit card statements regularly. D]

And don’t forget your credit report – check it at least once a year as well, and report any strange or fraudulent entries.

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