New Scam in Town......Scammers Use Fake E Mail to Lure Victims Into Giving Personal Information.

Posted on January 27, 2016 by Amy Herbert, Consumer Education Specialist, FTC

The subject line says “Get Protected,” and the email talks about new features from the Social Security Administration (SSA) that can help taxpayers monitor their credit reports, and know about unauthorized use of their Social Security number. It even cites the IRS and the official-sounding “S.A.F.E Act 2015.” It sounds real, but it’s all made up.

It’s a phishing email to get you to click on a scammer’s link. If you do, a scammer can install malware — like viruses and spyware — on your computer. Or, the link might send you to a spoof site — a lookalike website set up by a scammer to trick you into entering your personal information.



Not sure if an email is really from the government? Here are a couple of clues. Did the email end up in your junk folder? Email providers use filters to help catch phishing scams and prevent spam from getting into your inbox. And when you hover your cursor over the link, is the web address really a trusted website? In this fake SSA email, when you hover over the URL you’re invited to click on, you see the link goes to an unrelated “.com” — instead of the Social Security Administration’s socialsecurity.gov or another “.gov” site.

If you get a questionable email, don’t click on any links, or open any attachments. Report it to the FTC by forwarding the email to spam@uce.gov — and to the real organization impersonated in the email. You also can report it to your email provider. Some email providers let you mark messages as phishing scams. Your report is most effective when you include the full email header, although most email programs hide this information. To find out the full header, type the name of your email service with “full email header” into your favorite search engine, and include this information in your report. When you’re done, delete the email.

If you’re unsure about an email that looks like it’s from the government, contact the agency directly. But find the contact info yourself.

Maine President of International Securities Organization Announces Annual List of Top Investment Threats and Scams--Investors Urged to Approach Unsolicited Offers with Caution

12/23/2015 02:42 PM EST

Maine's Securities Administrator Judith Shaw, who serves as President of the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), today released an annual list of top investor threats and urged investors to use caution when approached with unsolicited investments, especially those involving promissory notes, oil and gas deals, and real estate investment opportunities, including non-traded real estate investment trusts.

"Education and information are an investor's best defense against investment fraud," Administrator Shaw said. "These top threats to investors were determined by surveying members of NASAA to identify the five most problematic products, practices or schemes."

 

Maine Securities Administrator Judith Shaw

 Shaw cited the most often noted concerns identified by securities officials:

1. Unregistered Products and Unlicensed Salespersons: The offer of securities by an individual without a valid securities license should be a red alert for investors. Criminals also try to bypass stringent state registration requirements to pitch unregistered investments with a promise of "limited or no risk" and high returns.

2. Promissory Notes: In an environment of low interest rates, the promise of high-interest-bearing promissory notes may be tempting to investors, especially seniors and others living on a fixed income. Promissory notes generally are used by companies to raise capital. Legitimate promissory notes are marketed almost exclusively to sophisticated or corporate investors with the resources to research thoroughly the companies issuing the notes and to determine whether the issuers have the capacity to pay the promised interest and principal. Most promissory notes must be registered as securities with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the states in which they are sold. Average investors should be cautious about offers of promissory notes with a duration of nine months or less, which in some circumstances do not require registration. Short-term notes that appear to be exempt from securities registration have been the source of most - but not all - of the fraudulent activity involving promissory notes identified by regulators.

3. Oil and Gas Investments: Many oil and gas investment opportunities, while involving varying degrees of risks to the investor, are legitimate in their marketing and responsible in their operations. However, as in many other investment opportunities, it is not unusual for unscrupulous promoters to attempt to take advantage of investors by engaging in fraudulent practices. Fraudulent oil and gas deals frequently are structured with the limited partnership (or other legal entity) in one state, the operation and physical presence of the field in a second state, and the offerings made to prospective investors in states other than the initial two states. As a result, there is less chance of an investor visiting a well site or nonexistent company headquarters. Such a structure also makes it difficult for authorities to identify and expose the fraud.

4. Real estate-related Investments: Troublesome real estate-related investments identified by securities officials include non-traded real estate investment trusts (REITs), timeshare re-sales, and brokered mortgage notes. These types of products often carry higher risk. For example, non-traded REITs are sold directly to investors and are not traded on exchanges (as are conventional REITs). Non-traded REITs can be risky and have limited liquidity, which may make them unsuitable for certain investors.

5. Ponzi Schemes: The premise is simple: pay early investors with money raised from later investors. The only people certain to make money are the promoters who set the Ponzi in motion.

"Investors should always be wary of unsolicited financial advice or investment opportunities," Shaw said. "Before making significant investment decisions, ask questions, make sure you understand the risks, and contact Maine's Office of Securities for detailed background information about those who sell securities or give investment advice, as well as about the products being offered." Consumers are encouraged to contact the Office of Securities to check an adviser, salesperson or investment, or for other information related to investing, by calling 1-877-624-8551 (TTY: Please Call Maine Relay 711), by visiting the Office's website (www.investors.maine.gov), or by writing to Maine Office of Securities, 121 SHS, Augusta, ME 04333-0121.

The Office of Securities is part of Maine's Department of Professional and Financial Regulation, which encourages sound business practices through the oversight of insurers, financial institutions, creditors, investment providers, and numerous professions More information is available at www.maine.gov/pfr.

State Officials Continue to Warn About Phoney IRS Telephone Scams, and Give Pointers on How to Identify Telephone Scams!

State Officials Issue Warning about Phony IRS Calls, and Offer Free Anti-Scam Publications

12/09/2015 12:26 PM EST

Maine's Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection at the Department of Professional and Financial Regulation (www.maine.gov.pfr) is warning about a scam making its rounds again, just in time for the holiday season.

The Bureau has received multiple reports from consumers in Washington, Aroostook and Kennebec Counties about phony calls from scammers posing as IRS agents, demanding payment immediately to avoid arrest and jail time. The Bureau's Principal Examiner, David Leach, outlined several recent cases:

-- A Pittston man reported his household received a call from a man saying he was an IRS agent, stating his family was in danger of imminent arrest unless money was wired to him the same afternoon.

-- An Aroostook county woman reported a caller saying she was working for the IRS and there was a pending federal lawsuit against her, and the only way it could be stopped was for her to send money that day.

-- A Washington County man stated a neighbor had sent money to a caller purporting to be an IRS agent to settle a tax obligation and avoid a federal action, and later learned he had been scammed, and the money sent was lost.

"Governmental tax agencies will not call consumers and demand immediate payment of overdue taxes," Leach said. "Maine citizens are reporting the same approach by scammers. The calls were their first notice of owing supposedly overdue taxes, and in each case, because it was a scam, no monies were actually due. Legitimate authorities will start their communications with correspondence on agency letterhead, sent from an actual government office, while scammers do not operate in this manner."

Leach noted that scammers typically attempt to scare potential victims into writing funds immediately using such money transmission options such as Western Union, Money Gram or a Green Dot Card. Once the money is wired and received by crooks, it's generally gone for good. The Maine Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection offers the following guidelines:

-- Never send money for alleged overdue taxes in response to a single call from someone claiming to be working for a taxation authority. This is especially true when the caller threatens arrest unless funds are sent by money transmitters or prepaid cash cards.

-- Never disclose personal information such as Social Security number, date of birth, credit card or bank account numbers to unknown callers; this could lead to identity theft.

-- If the caller claims to be from a federal agency like the IRS, ask for the exact name of that agency, the agency's physical address, and the supervisor's direct dial (not an 800 number). If the caller claims to be in Washington DC, the number should have an area code of 202. When in doubt, locate the actual number of the tax authority and call to determine if you are the subject of an overdue tax bill.

-- Report suspicious activity to the Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection, 1-800-332-8529, or to an IRS office, or a federal law enforcement office in Maine or Boston.

Additional information about the Maine Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection and its resources, including its free (to Maine residents) anti-scam titled Gone Phishing, is available by calling the Bureau or online at www.Credit.Maine.gov.

Reminder: Calls purporting to be from the IRS demanding a payment are a SCAM

12/04/2015 09:22 AM EST

(AUGUSTA) The Maine Attorney General's Office has noticed a recent increase in the number of Mainers calling to report they are the target of phone scams in which someone pretends to be calling to collect a debt owed to the Internal Revenue Service. Maine Attorney General Janet T. Mills is reminding people to be aware that these are scams and they should not give people credit card information or wire money.

"The IRS scam and others like it are the most common complaint we receive," said Attorney General Mills. "However, we have noticed a recent spike in the number of people calling our office to alert us and to complain specifically about IRS scams. On Thursday alone we received 61 contacts from Maine people. These are often randomly dialed calls, but for some reason the 207 area code seems to be their target in recent weeks. People should not engage the callers and hang up the phone. Do not give them personal information and do not wire them money."

Here's how they work: Scammers posing as IRS officials call and say you owe taxes. They threaten to arrest you, or deport you, or revoke your license, or even shut down your business if you don't pay right away. They may know your Social Security number - or at least the last four digits of it - making you think it really is the IRS calling. They also can rig caller ID to make it look like the call is coming from Washington, DC.

You are the instructed to put the money on a prepaid debit card and tell them the number - something no government agency would ask you to do. Once you do it, you find out it was a scam, and the money is gone.

"No governmental agency or legitimate business will call you up and demand an immediate payment by credit card, wire transfer or by pre-paid debit card," said Attorney General Janet T. Mills. "If you receive one of these calls, do not answer any of their questions. Hang up the phone immediately."

If you owe - or think you owe - federal taxes, call the IRS at 800-829-1040 or go to irs.gov. IRS workers can help you with your payment questions. The IRS doesn't ask people to pay with prepaid debit cards or wire transfers, and doesn't ask for credit card numbers over the phone. When the IRS contacts people about unpaid taxes, they usually do it by mail, not by phone.

One Maine resident recorded his interaction with a scammer claiming to be from the Internal Revenue Service and posted it to YouTube. The call illustrates several tactics used by phone scammers. They claimed to be from an entity that the target is familiar with and who he has the potential to owe money to - we all have to deal with the IRS at some point. When challenged about his authenticity, the scammer tried to reassure the target by giving a badge number in order to sound official. And finally, the payment could only be made by "Green Dot Money Pak," available at places like WalMart or drug store chains, and not by other means. The scammers are also not easily dissuaded; different people called repeatedly making the same claims in order to make him think they were legitimate.

Report IRS imposter scams to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) online or at 800-366-4484, and to the FTC at ftc.gov/complaint.

If you have questions about these or other consumer matters, please contact the Consumer Protection Division of the Maine Attorney General's Office at 1(800) 436-2131 or consumer.mediation@maine.gov .

Milton New Hampshire Police Warn Area Residents of a Phone Scam that is Targeting Their Area...........

Another phone scam is uncovered in a nearby New Hampshire town.
This time the warning comes from Milton, New Hampshire.

Lebanon Friends, since we have no police department to warn of these phone scams, if you are contacted by someone and you believe it to be a SCAM, please alert the Maine State Police, and let us know at LMTS and we'll post it here for folks to see.

The BEST way to avoid your friends and neighbors becoming the unwilling victims of a scam is to let others know about it and shut the scammers down before they begin!!

From Milton, NH PD.......

Milton Police Department

Yesterday at 5:47pm ·

Milton Police Department has received notice of another phone scam going around.
In this scam, the caller purports to be calling from the federal government an...d promises an amount of money to be paid to the victim from the "American Recovery Act" in exchange for a Western Union Moneygram for a smaller amount.

As the holiday season approaches these type of scams promising easy money are more prevalent. Please consider letting loved ones, especially family or friends who may not have Facebook, know about this so they do not fall victim.
If you have any questions, please contact the Milton Police Department via dispatch at 652-4500.