Addressing consumer fraud around the world. The Baker Fraud Report focuses on mass marketing fraud – where victims never meet the fraudster in person but communicate over the phone, though the mail, or on the internet.
UK fraud reporting system Action Fraud to be replaced; scams account for 42% of all crimes
Solar Winds hackers got into email systems of federal prosecutors
Spanish-speakers most likely victims of grandparent scams says AARP
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Six Nigerians on FBI Most wanted list
In depth article on unemployment benefit theft in the U.S.
Why people can’t cut their losses; the sunk cost fallacy
Review and recommendation: High Noon, for which Gary Cooper won the best actor Oscar. Excellent, and not a shoot ‘em up. An honorable man faced with a town that won’t help. Named one of the 25 best films ever made.
BBB Studies. Here are links to some of the study topics: puppy fraud, tech support fraud, romance fraud money mules, apartment rental, crooked movers, government imposters, online vehicle sale scams, rental fraud and gift cards.
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23% of those in the US say they lost money to a phone scam in the last year
Fraud text messages supposedly from State agencies. I’m in Illinois, and now get one of these almost every day, as do my neighbors. Is it just the Land of Lincoln? I’ve not seen much on this topic, but it seems to be growing incredibly fast.
News Nigeria: How Ray Hushpuppi became wealthy as a social influencer and how he laundered BEC funds
Singapore investigating 334 as money mules for BEC, romance, tech support and other scams
New FTC Chair Lina Khan names Chopra advisors Sam Levine acting head of consumer protection; Holly Vedova acting head of Bureau of Competition, and Erie Meyer as Chief Technologist Dems now have 3-2 majority
Chinese propaganda app being used by romance scammers there; government censors reports on problem
New Google Pay app now lets people send money to India and Singapore through Western Union. Are scammers close behind?
New fraud trend to watch out for: The US government is now paying for the funeral expenses of those who died from the virus. Not surprisingly, sources tell the Fraud Report that crooks are now applying for this money online and stealing funds. And if the crooks are not in the U.S. they doubtless need mules to first collect the money.
Consumer Survey on counterfeit goods
Review and recommendation: Unsettled, What climate science tells us, what it doesn’t, and why it matters, by Steven E. Koonin, physicist at Caltech, Undersecretary of Science in the US Energy Department in the Obama Administration. Everyone agrees that there is more Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, it is tough to pierce the fog of politics and media to figure out what data we have about climate change, how reliable is it, what does that data mean? This quite readable book should help every informed citizen get a better grasp on key issues such as how much of climate change is natural, how much is manmade, and what are our options for dealing with this?
BBB Studies. Here are links to some of the study topics: puppy fraud, tech support fraud, romance fraud money mules, apartment rental, crooked movers, government imposters, online vehicle sale scams, rental fraud and gift cards.
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Know a romance fraud victim who is still troubled after the scam?
FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center releases report on fraud against older victims in 2020
Theft of log in information of 26 million for Amazon, Facebook, Apple
Why Buffalo, New York, is the hub of crooked debt collectors; ties to the mafia
BBB Studies. Here are links to some of the study topics: puppy fraud, tech support fraud, romance fraud money mules, apartment rental, crooked movers, government imposters, online vehicle sale scams, rental fraud and gift cards.
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Better Business Bureau updates study on lottery/sweepstakes scams
Robocalls are down in the US over the last year
US seizes most of the ransom paid by Colonial Pipeline
Reviews and Recommendations: Broken Windows, by James Q. Wilson. The authors found that if one window is broken in a building the public concludes no one really cares, and the others are quickly shattered as well. The same idea holds true for Disney World; when litter is quickly picked up, people litter far less. This also applies to crime; where minor crime issues are addressed there is far less overall crime.
. Here are links to some of the study topics: puppy fraud, tech support fraud, romance fraud money mules, apartment rental, crooked movers, government imposters, online vehicle sale scams, rental fraud and gift cards.
North Carolina AG proposes mandatory scam training for retail clerks
47 State AG’s support federal legislation to help fight fraud against seniors
WashPost: FTC looking at ways to address problems with free trial offer/subscription traps
Ransomware from Russia shuts down world’s largest meat producer in the US and Australia
Australia nabs five for laundering money for BEC and romance frauds
