Home New York Press Releases 2010 FBI Continues to See Schemes Aimed at Defrauding Consumers, Reminds New Yorkers to Be Vigilant
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FBI Continues to See Schemes Aimed at Defrauding Consumers, Reminds New Yorkers to Be Vigilant

FBI New York December 09, 2010

The FBI continues to see numerous, creative schemes all with the same objective: to defraud and scam consumers out of millions of dollars. Two of the most aggressive scams currently in use involve a telephone collection scam related to delinquent payday loans and a sweepstakes or lottery scheme.

Details on delinquent payday loans:

  • The caller purports to be a representative of the FBI, Federal Legislative Department, various law firms, or other legitimate sounding agencies. They claim to be collecting debts for companies such as United Cash Advance, U.S. Cash Advance, U.S. Cash Net, and other Internet check cashing services.
    • The caller from the purported collection agency, law firm, or company calls the victims relentlessly at their home, place of employment, on their cell phone, and even resorts to calling their relatives. They are threatened with legal action, arrest, and sometimes physical violence.
    • Callers generally have very accurate information about the victim including: Social Security numbers, dates of birth, addresses, employer, bank accounts, and names and telephone numbers of friends.
    • The fraudsters instruct victims to fax a statement agreeing to pay a certain dollar amount on a specific date in addition to declaring that they would never dispute the debt. They are generally asked to make the payments via pre-paid credit card.


Details on the sweepstakes or lottery scheme:

  • A caller informs the victim that they have won the lottery or a sweepstake, but must first pay the company to cover taxes and a processing fee before the payout will be issued.
    • They are instructed to call a phone number to initiate a letter of instruction. The letter includes processing instructions and further reiterates that they must first pay the taxes before any winnings will be issued.
    • Furthermore, the letter also includes a check in the amount of the alleged taxes and fees due, allowing the victim to take an advance against their winnings.
    • The check is usually deposited by the victim and credited to their account before the check actually clears. The victim withdraws the money and wires it. Eventually, the check proves to be counterfeit and the bank pulls the respective funds from the victim’s account, leaving the victim liable for the amount of the counterfeit check plus any additional fees the bank charges.


“The holiday season is upon us and this is a good time to remind the public to be leery of the allure of easy money. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. These schemes are centered on stealing personal identifiable information. If anyone believes they are the victim of a crime, I highly encourage them to file a complaint at IC3.gov,” said Special Agent in Charge for the Special Operations Division Mary Galligan.

There are several quick tips to help consumers avoid such schemes:

  • If you receive a call on your delinquent payday loan, contact your banking institution immediately.
    • Contact the three major credit bureaus and request an alert be put on your file.
    • Contact local law enforcement if you feel that you are in immediate danger.
  • If you receive a call reportedly from a lottery or sweepstakes company, be leery if you do not remember entering such a drawing.
    • Beware of lotteries or sweepstakes that charge a fee prior to delivering your prize.
    • Be wary of demands to send additional money as a requirement to be eligible for future winnings.
    • Federal statute prohibits mailing lottery tickets, advertisements, or payments to purchase tickets in a foreign lottery.


If you feel you are a victim of this type of scam or any other cyber crime, you are encouraged to report it to the Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.IC3.gov. The Internet Crime Complaint Center links complaints for potential referral to law enforcement and for case consideration. It is also helpful in alerting the public about emerging trends and patterns of new fraudulent schemes. Sign up for e-mail alerts and the latest on Internet scams.

Internet Crime Prevention Tips:
http://www.ic3.gov/preventiontips.aspx
http://www.fbi.gov/scams-safety/e-scams/e-scams

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