We interrupt this column to bring you special coverage of
SCAMS, SPAMS, RIP OFFS, and SWINDLES. And other ways
people all over the world (with too much time on their hands)
have of parting you from your money.
Any email you receive that is NOT from a personal friend or
relative is a potential SCAM! I use Outlook for my email
and have a “Rules Wizard” set up to move any mail
that is from someone NOT in my address book to a special SPAM
folder. Be VERY weary of any unsolicited email as you
would any regular mail.
The BASIC RULES:
1. Never open an attachment.
If it is from a friend, ask them in a reply email if it is
ok FIRST.
2. Never give out personal information.
3. Never give out ANY banking
or financial information.
4. Never send money!
5. Never delete files from your
computer without checking first.
6. DON’T SEND Chain emails.
They clog up and slow down the internet.
Her are just a few scams and hoaxes going around RIGHT NOW:
You’ve won! No you didn’t! This
may be an attempt to get you to pay a ‘small’
charge for delivery of something that is worth less than the
delivery charge.
Bank Security Update & PayPal These schemes try
and get you to enter your account user id and password.
NEVER do that for ANY reason!
Spywarenuker Never download ANY program unless you have
verified that it is OK.
Nigerian Free No you won’t be saving anyone’s
life and you won’t be repaid.
You have a virus No you don’t. Don’t
start searching for and then deleting files. Check one
of the links below first!
Phone Or Pager You get a message that asks you to return the
call to an 809 area code or some other area code. Watch
out, it could cost you US$50/minute.
A few more from the US Government’s FTC site (http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/alerts/doznalrt.htm):
Business opportunities Pyramid schemes masquerading
as legitimate opportunities to earn money.
Bulk email No legitimate businesses engage in bulk email
marketing, for fear of offending potential customers.
Chain letters Chain letters, traditional or high-tech,
are almost always illegal, and nearly all of the people who
participate in them lose their money.
Work-at-home schemes You’ll pay a small fee to
get started in the envelope-stuffing business, etc.
Health and diet scams These gimmicks don’t work.
Effortless income If these systems worked, wouldn’t
everyone be using them?
Free goods Most of these messages are covering
up pyramid schemes.
Investment opportunities Usually a Ponzi scheme which
collapses because there isn’t enough money coming in
to continue simulating earnings.
Cable descrambler kits The device that you build probably
won’t work.
Guaranteed loans or credit, on easy terms The home equity
loans turn out to be useless lists of lenders who will turn
you down
Credit repair The scam artists who promote these services
can’t deliver.
Vacation prize promotions Often, the cruise ship you’re
booked on may look more like a tug boat. The hotel accommodations
likely are shabby, and you may be required to pay more for
an upgrade. Scheduling the vacation at the time you want it
also may require an additional fee.
One more, from http://www.fraudbureau.com/articles/consumer.html
International Telephone Fraud. In this scam you receive an
email message stating that a large order of goods has been
billed to your credit card and you must call an international
number to cancel the order. Once you call the number, you
are later billed for the international long-distance call.
Favorite LINK – CHECK THESE SITES OUT FIRST!:
• http://www.symantec.com/avcenter/hoax.html
A HUGE list of hoaxes found on the internet and thru emails.
• http://hoaxbusters.ciac.org/
Hoax Busters. Great site with a search form. Enter
your category (like PayPal) and see what it says!
• And just for fun: http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/
Hoaxes through history (non computer).
You can report all email scams to:
The Internet Fraud Complaint Center (IFCC) http://www.ifccfbi.gov/cf1.asp
and
List of places to file complaints for different types of email
Scams and SPAM: http://www.elsop.com/wrc/complain.htm
Have a question or problem? Write me at BaliPCAdvisor@GMail.com.
I’ll try and answer as soon as I can.
PakBruce, your Bali PC Advisor!
Bali PC Advisor “Archives” NOW ONLINE: http://www.balitravel-insider.com/balipcadvisor/.
<note ALL lower case letters. You can search previous issues
for information.
NEXT time (our regularly schedule column): Software - what
upgrades are worth the effort
