The OneMinute Geek

Avoiding Internet Scams

The Problem:

Maybe you can’t cheat an honest man, but you can cost him a lot of money. The Internet offers con artists a fantastic opportunity for mass communication on a global scale, communication that may steal your credit card and identity while it pedals miracle products. How can you protect yourself?

The Solution:

Buyer beware should be your watchword in any internet transaction. Beware of the product and beware of the purchase method.

The cardinal way to be wary of the product is to remember the old adage: If something appears too good to be true, it probably isn’t true. This is the main message of www.scamwatch.com, a website directory of scams, current and past. It details “a dirty dozen” of scam categories ranging from work-at-home schemes, bogus business opportunities, and effortless income to chain letters, promises of miracle cures, and promises of free goods.

Another helpful website is www.scambusters.org. Billed as “The #1 Publication on Internet Fraud,” this website has a Scam Check Station where you can check out a specific offer. You may be surprised. For example, would you believe a site (http://www.hearandplay.com/) that offers you more than 60 free piano lessons? What about an offer to learn to make money helping people laugh? Or one that gives you ten free classes in scrapbooking along with details on avoiding the eight biggest mistakes scrapbookers can make. Scambusters reports that all three are legitimate. So, check them out. Go to www.scambusters.org for directions to these sites.

In addition to detailing the good and the bad of internet offers, Scambusters also watches out for the ugly. It helps you decide what to do if you’ve already been ripped off.Stealing your credit information when you order a phony product turns a con into a crime. Scambusters warns you to watch out for the following:

Web spoofing. Be sure you are on a legitimate website when you are ordering anything on line. In a recent study published by USA Today, eBay was one of the most-spoofed websites. You probably exercise all the normal cautions when you deal with an online auction sites: be sure you know what you are bidding on; read reviews of sellers; use an escrow service. But, did you ever stop to think that you might not be on the real auction site? Also on the rise are spoofed websites seeking to compromise credit card holders’ personal information. Spoofed bank site scams include asking visitors to accept large deposits before being told to forward the amount on to a third party, minus a “transaction fee” earned for forwarding the money.

Phishing. You get an email or a chat message that claims to be from the billing department of your internet service provider or someone else you do business with. You’re asked to reconfirm your credit card number. Bad idea! Never give your credit card information in response to an electronic query. The Federal Trade Commission (www.ftc.com) offers advice to both consumers and businesses on avoiding identity theft and scams.

Other websites that offer help in identifying scams and avoiding identity theft include the following.

Cagey Consumer www.cageyconsumer.com

Fraud Bureau www.fraudbureau.com

Anti-Phishing Working Group www.antiphishing.org

Information on all the sites mentioned is free. Scambusters even offers a monthly newsletter to keep you up to date on the universe of scams.

James Kerr is President/CEO of SuperGeeks, a Hawaii-based computer service and repair company (www.supergeeks.net). Please feel free to send your questions, comments and suggestions to Mr. Kerr. He can be reached at kerr@supergeeks.net and 942-0773.