Top Five Scams to Watch Out For

Unfortunately there are many people out there looking to scam innocent people. We must be extremely careful when making the decision to do business with someone or we may find ourselves falling prey to these criminals. Here are the top five scams to watch out for.

1. Sweepstakes. While most of us are aware of the scam factor involving email sweepstakes that claim we've won a huge prize, the notifications that come in the mail are easier to fall victim to. Often the scam sweepstakes includes valid company information which they have illegally used to represent themselves in a way that makes it appear valid. This way when the recipient does a search on the web for the company it seems to be100% legitimate. The catch? The sweepstakes requires a payment before you can receive your winnings. They claim that taxes need to be paid upfront, and once you send your check you'll never hear from them again. The reality is this: you will never, ever be required to send a payment to collect winnings for a valid sweepstakes. Also, if you cannot recall how they received your information it is likely a scam.

2. Fundraisers. We've all gone to a grocery store or department store to find a child selling candy bars for his basketball team standing outside, but you might be surprised to know this is likely a scam. Adults get teens involved and pay them a portion of the earnings because it seems more believable for a child to sell the candy. Other scam artists are bolder, claiming they have a sick child or a child that has recently died and they are in need of money. These scam artists know how to pull at the heartstrings of people and are not afraid to use what they can to get the money they want. The next time one of these scam artists approaches you ask them for the name of their charity and tell them you will make a donation directly. This will prevent you from being scammed by anyone that is potentially trying to rip you off.

3. Foreclosure assistance. Since there are so many people having trouble with paying their mortgages, this newest scan has been taking the country by storm. The scam artists access public records letting them see who is foreclosing on their homes, then they sweep in promising assistance. Instead they charge hefty fees adding up to the thousands which do nothing to save the foreclosure from occurring. In fact, most of them take the money and actually do not do anything to help the situation at all. They simply pocket the money and move on to their next victim. Some of these scam artists even get people to sign their homes over to them causing even more trouble.

4. Store Evaluations/Survey Jobs. I recently received a very real looking check in the mail for $1,200. It appeared to be from the company who makes Smart Balance butter spreads, although this information was only found out after I searched the web for the address and company name on the check. With the check came a letter asking me to use the money to shop at Walmart and fill out the attached questionnaire. I was allowed to spend $100 on items which I was allowed to keep, plus take $300 for payment. The rest would need to wired back to the company. I immediately contacted the company and they agreed it was a scam. They sent me some coupons for free products and a thank you letter for reporting it to them. It's obvious why this was a scam, but details also included the international return address on the envelope and the badly photocopied questionnaire that was included.

5. Free trials. Quite often people sign up for free trials thinking they are getting something for nothing, but this is rarely the case. The free trial usually requires a valid credit card and w=once the trial period is over they hit your card up with lengthy fees. They advise you to cancel the service at any time, but then state that the process takes weeks to go through allowing them to collect more fees. Other services that claim to be free, such as the free credit report offers, also prove to be scams. Remember, if they are offering something for free it likely isn't since there is nothing in it for them.