Have you ever received a check in the mail, made out to you from a contest or sweepstake, that you never entered. This is a sure scam if you are made to believe that you won a prize and are instructed to deposit the check in your bank account and then wire transfer some money to “help pay the taxes” or “pay a courier to deliver the rest of the money to you that you’ve won.” Quite a few people fall for these fake-check scams because the check looks legitimate and authentic even so the word “void” is printed on the photocopy and not on the original check and when you finally get a hold of a socalled contest or sweepstake representative they will tell you that it was a security precaution to prevent theft.
Any unsolicited check with instructions to forward money has the markings of a scam. The deposited check may be credited to you right away allowing you to wire the requested money. However it might take your bank 2 weeks to authenticate the deposited check. If the check turns out to be counterfit you will be held liable for the wired funds and could face criminal fraud and counterfeiting charges.
Anytime you get a suspicious check in the mail you should do a web search on the issuer of the check. Remember that participation in foreign lotteries and contests violate US law. It is a good idea to examine the check for an incorrect zip code or a misspelled stret name in the address of the issuer.
In the lower left corner of the check you should find a nine-digit bank routing number and an account number. If the routing number is missing or has more or fewer than 9 digits, it is no doubt a fake. You can verify these numbers with the National Check Fraud Center in Charleston, SC. www.ckfraud.org . You can also find out if the scammers made up routing and account numbers. You can also contact the US Secret Service at www.secretservice.gov/fieldoffices.shtml. wheneer you come across a suspicious looking check. Suspicious checks received in the mail should be reported to the US Postal Inspection Service at 1-877-876-2455 toll free.
THE INTERNET IS SO BIG, SO POWERFUL AND POINTLESS THAT FOR SOME PEOPLE IT IS A COMPLETE SUBSTITUTE FOR LIFE. (Andew Brown)
Tags: help pay taxes, routing #, scam, suspicious check
January 4, 2008 at 8:28 am |
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May 31, 2008 at 4:23 pm |
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