How to Protect Yourself from Real Estate Scams Real estate scams can wipe you out financially Real estate scams are really scary. Especially with how quickly artificial intelligence is being adopted and applied. March 7th was National Slam the Scam Day according to the Social Security Administration. While most people understand that there are ever-more [...]
How can you help better protect yourself against identity theft? The Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic has presented new opportunities for identity thieves and other bad actors to use the stress of the current environment to their advantage. With no concern for your financial well-being, thieves can use stolen information to run up balances on credit cards or [...]
COVID-19 scams: what to look for. How scammers are targeting Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic and what to do if you’re a victim of a COVID-19 scam. Update: The types of COVID-19 scams were updated to include a new national unemployment mailing scam on July 30th, 2020. Scammers have been working overtime this year, preying [...]
Five common holiday scams to avoid in 2019. Don’t be fooled by these popular holiday scams threatening to steal your information and then your identity. Anyone can be a victim of a scam. Just ask the 35,000 people who lost $10 million to an ongoing phone scam where scammers pretend to be from the Social [...]
I think I’m the victim of a scam. Now what? If you’re getting bills from unheard of companies, pull your credit report immediately. Q: I’m wondering if I’m being scammed. I received what looks like a bill from a company in Pennsylvania claiming that I have a current balance due of $704.02 as of February [...]
This post was updated September 20, 2017 and September 26, 2017. See below for most recent news. With all due respect to those injured by Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma, it's the question of the week: What should you do about Equifax and your credit in the wake of the largest credit breech in history? [...]
From 2011 through 2014, identity thieves submitted more than 19 million suspicious tax returns to the IRS for more than $63 billion in fraudulent refunds. But until recently, taxpayers weren’t allowed to see the fraudulent returns filed using their Social Security numbers (SSNs). That changed recently, thanks in part to a letter sent to the [...]
When buying or selling a home, you may find that you are sharing more sensitive personal information than at any other time in your life. Aside from Social Security numbers and addresses, which are key pieces of information that an identity thief needs, you’re also handing out detailed financial statements, work history, tax information, a [...]
Identity theft is becoming an increasing concern, especially for seniors. In fact, one source of personal information that fraudsters can use to steal your identity is your Medicare card. Part of the problem with Medicare cards is that your health insurance claim number (HICN) under Medicare is the same as your Social Security number (SSN)—and [...]
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is kicking off 2015 with Tax Identity Theft Awareness week, January 26 to 30. The purpose of this week is to educate people about identity theft—which could be anyone with a Social Security number (SSN). More than 1.6 million people were affected by tax identity theft in 2013. The IRS [...]
