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Avoid Income Tax Refund Loans, Article Advises
Posted on January 10th, 2010 No commentsAn article in the Sheboygan Press advises consumers to avoid income tax refund loans, as they were one of the “worst scams in Wisconsin” last year, according to the state Better Business Bureau. Last year Wisconsin taxpayers paid more than $32.5 million for these loans and associated fees, the paper reported.
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Scam Targets Payday Loan Borrowers
Posted on August 4th, 2009 No commentsA new scam targets people who have taken out payday loans, warns the Wisconsin Better Business Bureau. The scam could be the result of a security breach, as the con artists seem to have an unusual amount of personal information, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
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Credit Card Scam Attempt Reported
Posted on July 17th, 2009 No commentsThe Madison police reported a financial scam attempt, in which a woman received a call claiming to reduce the interest rate on her Chase or Capital One credit card. The caller asked the Madison woman to confirm her address and to provide her credit card number. Read The Capital Times article.
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Stimulus Scam Hits Wisconsin
Posted on April 24th, 2009 No commentsLetters purporting to be from a bank, with “Economic Stimulus Act 2009” on the masthead are showing up in more Madison-area mailboxes. These letters suggest the recipient will be eligible for a lower fixed rate on their mortgage – but they’re a scam. Read the Wisconsin State Journal article.
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Student Avoids ‘Pigeon Drop’ Scam
Posted on March 12th, 2009 No commentsA University of Wisconsin-Madison student avoided a “pigeon drop” last week by mingling with a group of other students at an ATM machine instead of handing the $300 she just withdrew over to the “very intimidating” scammer, according to a Capital Times article.
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‘Stimulus Grant’ Scams Abound
Posted on March 8th, 2009 No commentsOnline ads that promise individuals a share of the $787-billion stimulus pie are scams, warned the Federal Trade Commission and the Council of Better Business Bureaus, which have tracked several sites and Facebook ads that offer consumers thousands of dollars in “stimulus grants.” Read more in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Dollars & Sense blog.
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SBA Scam Detailed
Posted on February 20th, 2009 No commentsCon artists have been sending fraudulent letters on what looks like stationery of the U.S. Small Business Administration, asking business owners for bank account information so they supposedly can qualify for a tax rebate under the economic stimulus act, the SBA warned on Feb. 19. The letters are false and businesses should not respond to them, the agency said in a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel news brief. Anyone who receives such a letter should report it to the SBA fraud line, (800) 767-0385 or e-mail OIGHotline@sba.gov.
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State Warns of Tax Scams
Posted on January 29th, 2009 No commentsThe state departments of Ag, Trade and Consumer Protection and Revenue are warning Wisconsin residents to beware of phone calls or e-mails claiming to be from the Internal Revenue Service. Read more about tax scams on WKOW Channel 27’s web site.
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Bank Warns of Phishing Scam
Posted on January 9th, 2009 No commentsAssociated Bank said customers and non-customers have been the target of a “phishing” attack in which Internet thieves use e-mail or text messages to try to trick people into revealing personal financial information, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
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Pigeon Drop Scam is Back
Posted on January 6th, 2009 No commentsAn 86-year-old woman didn’t fall for the old “pigeon drop” scam outside a grocery store in Madison, thwarting two women who tried to con her out of her money. In a pigeon drop, the scammers show a wad of cash, claiming they found the money, and want to split it up between the scammers and the “pigeon,” the one being taken. Read the Capital Times story.