BAKER FRAUD REPORT — News you can use
March 2, 2017
Let’s get the word out
National Consumer Protection Week in the US March 5 –11. Here is information
Information on March Fraud Prevention Month in Canada.
2017 Senior Toolkit_EN is the Canadian tool kit for frauds affecting seniors
“Free trial offers” are ripping off millions of people. What you need to know – and share with friends
We are deluged with ads for various pills and potions to lose weight, improve memory, help with arthritis or back pain, eliminate wrinkles, or improve sex. These are in our newspapers, on the radio, and are prominent as links on the websites we visit every day. Sometimes these even appear in our email. What do far too many of these have in common? They advertise free trial offers with “no risk.” You simply have to put in your credit card to pay a couple of dollars for shipping and handling, and then, they claim, you can easily cancel if you’re not convinced that the product is great. What’s not to like? But millions of people have been ripped off by these frauds, finding that it is difficult or impossible to avoid being charged at least $100 or so. So let’s spread the word and help our friends and families from being ripped off.
This article does not focus on whether the products work or the deceptive claims that that are made to trick victims into placing an order. Instead it tells you what you need to know about how “free trials” work and how to avoid being ripped off by them. If you place an order with one of these companies it is often nearly impossible to avoid being charged close to $100 for at least one bottle of pills. And in many cases the companies continue to ship products every month – and charging for them – until you can make them stop.
How many people have been ripped off by free trial offers and how much do they lose?
In six cases brought by the FTC over the last few years that involve “free trials” total losses are nearly $800 million. Central Coast Nutraceuticals: $80 million; Jesse Willms: $359 million; LeanSpa: $25 million; Jeremy Johnson: $275 million; Sale Slash: 43.4 million; XXL Impressions: $6.57 million.
If we presume that most people lose an average of $100, this would mean that there are at least eight million victims of these companies – a large part of the adult population of the US. And there are surely more operations that the FTC has not yet been able to tackle. I know friends who have been taken by these tactics. I’m sure you do too.
Fraud and the Elderly — Is Anyone Paying Attention? An interesting article on the need to do more about fraud affecting the elderly.
IRS issues
- IRS warns of bogus charities that impersonate well known organizations
- Two Nigerians indicted in Grand Rapids, MI for filing bogus tax returns
- Tax preparers in the Southern District of California plead guilty to ID theft and filing bogus tax returns. Got more than $880,000
- IRS criminal cases down 12% due to budget cuts, retirements of agents
- Rockford Il woman sentenced to 51 months in prison for filing bogus tax returns
- National Consumers League Alert warns of bogus tax preparers — and notes free help for those struggling financially
Sextortion
- Sextortion investigation by Hawaii state police
- Police in Morocco set up more cybercrime units to combat sextortion gangs operating there
Grandparent Fraud
ATM skimming
- Ringleader of a trio of Romanians extradited from Spain and sentenced in New Jersey for ATM skimming – took at least $5M.
- Two Russians arrested in New Britain, CT for ATM skimming
Ransomware
- Porn app on android causes phones to lock up and ransomware demands $100 in bitcoin
- New version of Tech Support fraud borrows tricks from Ransomware frauds
Jamaica sweepstakes fraud
Business Email Compromise
Other News
BBB warns of puppy scams. The FTC gets thousands of complaints from people who see a cute pet on line, usually a dog, and agree to buy it. They send money for the cost of the puppy through Western Union or MoneyGram, but the pet does not exist. The pictures of the pet posted online are simply copied from other sites. NEVER get a pet sight unseen.
- Canadian AntiFraud Centre reports largest source of fraud losses in 2016 were from romance scams, with 1267 complaints and losses of 20,994,468.
Interested in more consumer news? My friend Edgar Dworsky, formerly a consumer protection lawyer at the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, operates a very interesting and useful web site at www.consumerworld.org. I’m jealous….
Just for fun….
Kind of old, but still fun humor. FBI unleashes telemarketers on the Taliban
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzjVGG0ja4c
Add to the News! Have you seen a recent prosecution or other fraud information that others should know about? Send it into the Baker Fraud Report at steve@bakerfraudreport.com
