Fraud Alerts

As the holiday season approaches, it seems like there are more and more fake shopping sites. The ads on social media show expensive products like electric scooters, designer bags, and other popular toys and gifts at unbelievably low prices. Many of these bogus sites use photos and logos the scammers steal from legitimate businesses, but they won’t send you authentic products. If you’re wondering how to avoid these phony offers, there are a few ways to help you detect them.

During the holiday season, you might expect to get more deliveries. Some might even be surprise gifts. Scammers are counting on that when they send fake delivery notifications to you by email and text, hoping you’ll click. Here’s how to spot these scams.

There’s no shortage of good causes to donate to this holiday season. But before you give somewhere new, make sure you’re not donating to a scam.

Many communities are experiencing devastating losses from recent hurricanes, and no one knows how long it will take to recover. Maybe you’re considering donating to help people in those communities. But how can you avoid charity scams and make sure your donations go to the people who need them and not to a scammer?

People are reporting getting calls (and calls) (and more calls) about their supposed “loan application.” Only they hadn’t applied for a loan. So what’s going on?

Crypto ATMs are becoming one of the scammers’ favorite new payment methods.

Did someone tell you to buy a gift card to pay a fine or bill? Stop. It’s a scam. No real business or government agency will ever tell you to buy a gift card to pay them. Here’s how to spot and avoid gift card scams.

Imagine carrying a written copy of all your conversations with you everywhere you went. Or copies of your account numbers, usernames, and passwords. Or all the photos and videos you’ve ever taken. Well, your mobile phone holds all that stuff — and maybe more. Are you doing everything in your power to keep it from ending up in the wrong hands? Here are three things you can do today to protect the personal information on your phone.

If your new online friend or romantic interest says they have an emergency and need money, it might not mean they have bad luck. It’s more likely they’re a scammer trying to grab your money. So, how can you tell if an online “friend” is a fraud?

Did you get a message on social from an “artist” asking to pay you for permission to paint your photo? It’s a scam. They don’t want to pay you — they want to take your money.