Tuesday, November 09, 2004
Everyone is out to profit this Christmas in the UK.
Everyone is out to profit this Christmas in the UK.
Scam and con artists, fraudsters you name them their about in abundance, trying to relieve you of your well earned cash.
With the Christmas rush upon us, beware of the these blood sucking people using every method they are really good at, to convince you of legitimate or illegitimate propositions to give you extra money this Christmas.
Watch your bank account deplete in money if you give them any details whatsoever, you wouldn’t do such a thing would you?, well you would be surprised at how many people do give them bank, credit card details or money.
Here are some of the scams around at present.
E-mails that look like they came from a bank, building society or other legitimate financial institution to trick unsuspecting victims into giving up everything from their bank account information to their social security number. People receive an e-mail that looks like it came from a financial institution, such as the Woolwich building society
You click on the link in the e-mail, and view the company Web site, complete with logos, artwork, and perhaps even a legal disclaimer. There will be boxes for passwords, account information, social security number and anything else the scammer wants to steal from you.
Phone calls, telling you have WON either money, holiday or some other type of appetizing gift.
Your excited about winning, you listen intensively to what they are telling you, then comes the scam.
We need administration fees from you to process the win, why on earth if you have won something would they be asking you for money.
At this time of year, con artists prey on your good nature and feelings of remorse for those who are under privileged at this time.
E-mails telling you that a Mrs. Virginia of the United Kingdom was killed in a car accident, and your are the sole beneficiary of her $12.5 million estate. All you have to do is provide them with your bank account number, and the money will be transferred from the Habib Trust Bank of England.
Or similar E-mails, telling of the condition of illness they are presently suffering, and can you send them money to help their suffering.
The older community are especially venerable to these people, asking for all types of things like sick requests, to send money to pay for a funeral, flowers, or other requirements to aid the passing on of a departed relative or friend.
Preying on women seems to be the most popular method for these scammers.
Take this example for instance, you receive a phone call in the middle of the day while your husband is at work.
The caller claims to be phoning from an American insurance company in co-operation with a well-known women’s organization.
He says that for £14 per week females can be insured against varying forms of female cancer, such as breast or ovarian cancer. A payout of £75,000 is said to be received if claims are not made for 15 years.
They will then tell you about the different cancers that affect women nowadays. You will ask them to send you some information on the insurance policy but then you will be asked for your bank details, as this offer is only available right now over the phone.
Could you ever imagine this call about one of your siblings in trouble with the police or other authorities.
The culprits make calls often on prepaid cell phones, which are difficult to track, generally to elderly people, falsely claiming to be police officers or lawyers dealing with a son or daughter in trouble, and demand cash be transferred quickly into a bank account to save their child.
Sometimes they pretend to be the children themselves. Such crimes have grown so common they're called ``It's me, it's me'' fraud.
I could go on for ever writing down the scams of today, tomorrow there will be a new one out.
Just remember the following:
It is quite easy for someone to set up their own Internet web site, covering subjects from health insurance plans, financial investment opportunities, get rich quick schemes, stock market investments, currency trading etc etc.
Replicated Web sites are recreated so thoroughly it can take experts some time to confirm they are actually a fraud.
So beware, DO NOT give money to people you do not know, investigate the Company, checkout their credentials from reliable establishments, the physical address of its headquarters, not a post box office number, registration of a Company with http://www.companies-house.gov.uk/ And any other method you can think of.
Do not let the above put you off using the genuine services offered by legitimate companies.
Just use your common sense when approached by people, or using services from the Internet.
The saying goes " you get nothing for free in this life" so if you suspect something is amiss, then don’t pursue it.
Top Ten Tips For Safer Shopping online1---------All of your usual shopping rights apply online:............see www.consumer.gov.uk
2---------Know who you're dealing with: get the seller's phone number and postal address
3---------Be aware of terms and conditions: check payment and delivery details
4---------Keep records of what you order.
5---------EU Law protects you against fraudulent use of your payment card In
EU transactions: credit cards give you extra protection.
6---------Only give your payment card details over a secure connection, and never by
email: never disclose your PIN number to anyone, and never send it over the internet.
7---------You usually have at least 7 days to cancel an order and request a refund
from an EU retailer.
8---------Check your payment card statement carefully: you have at least 90 days
to report a suspect transaction.
9---------When you buy goods online from outside the EU:
·
you are an importer and may be liable to pay any Customs Duty and VAT;
·
err on the side of caution as it may be difficult to seek redress if problems arise
10--------If you have a problem, contact the seller then, if you need to, the payment
company, local Trading Standards Office and any 'trustmark' organisation
the seller is registered with.
Shopping online is new to the UK, to check you are using a secure payment site,both Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer use a safe connection called secure sockets layer (SSL). SSL scrambles all the information that passes between your browser and a secure server with high-gradeencryption. Not all Web sites use SSL, but responsible commercial sites license expensive secure server software from browser manufacturers to ensure the safety of commercial transactions. How can you tell if you're connected to one of them? There are two major signs. First, instead of seeing http:// at the beginning of the Web address, you'll see https:// (the extra s stands for secure). Second, on Netscape Navigator, the key icon at the bottom left of the screen will be bright yellow, intact, and on a dark blue background. Internet Explorer uses a less obvious icon: a little padlock in the middle of the status bar at the bottom of the screen. Either of these icons means that only you and the Web site at which you're shopping can see your detailsSSL does more than encrypt transactions. It also certifies the site you're dealing with. A small group of independent certifying authorities, including RSA Data Security (www.rsa.com) and VeriSign (www.verisign.com), validates commercial sites with digital certificates. Before your browser allows a secure server connection, it gets confirmation from the certifying authority that the connection is kosher. To find details, click on Netscape's key. Or in Internet Explorer right-click on the page and choose Properties. Pick the Security tab in the dialog box that pops up. The browser will show you certification details such as when the certificate was issued, where the company you're dealing with is based, and which certifying authority is vouchsafing the site.
So is online shopping truly as safe as mail-order or shopping direct? Well, you need to know whom you're dealing with no matter what shopping medium you use. But as long as you're aware of the potential dangers of giving out personal information online and take steps to check that the information will be secure, it's not much different from going to the shop direct-except the prices are often better and you never have to find a place to park.Just think! Banks use the same procedure to move huge amounts of money every second of the day, As long as use a secure connection to make your transaction all should be safe.
Safer shopping from,
Janet
www.uk-shop-and-buy.co.uk
Scam and con artists, fraudsters you name them their about in abundance, trying to relieve you of your well earned cash.
With the Christmas rush upon us, beware of the these blood sucking people using every method they are really good at, to convince you of legitimate or illegitimate propositions to give you extra money this Christmas.
Watch your bank account deplete in money if you give them any details whatsoever, you wouldn’t do such a thing would you?, well you would be surprised at how many people do give them bank, credit card details or money.
Here are some of the scams around at present.
E-mails that look like they came from a bank, building society or other legitimate financial institution to trick unsuspecting victims into giving up everything from their bank account information to their social security number. People receive an e-mail that looks like it came from a financial institution, such as the Woolwich building society
You click on the link in the e-mail, and view the company Web site, complete with logos, artwork, and perhaps even a legal disclaimer. There will be boxes for passwords, account information, social security number and anything else the scammer wants to steal from you.
Phone calls, telling you have WON either money, holiday or some other type of appetizing gift.
Your excited about winning, you listen intensively to what they are telling you, then comes the scam.
We need administration fees from you to process the win, why on earth if you have won something would they be asking you for money.
At this time of year, con artists prey on your good nature and feelings of remorse for those who are under privileged at this time.
E-mails telling you that a Mrs. Virginia of the United Kingdom was killed in a car accident, and your are the sole beneficiary of her $12.5 million estate. All you have to do is provide them with your bank account number, and the money will be transferred from the Habib Trust Bank of England.
Or similar E-mails, telling of the condition of illness they are presently suffering, and can you send them money to help their suffering.
The older community are especially venerable to these people, asking for all types of things like sick requests, to send money to pay for a funeral, flowers, or other requirements to aid the passing on of a departed relative or friend.
Preying on women seems to be the most popular method for these scammers.
Take this example for instance, you receive a phone call in the middle of the day while your husband is at work.
The caller claims to be phoning from an American insurance company in co-operation with a well-known women’s organization.
He says that for £14 per week females can be insured against varying forms of female cancer, such as breast or ovarian cancer. A payout of £75,000 is said to be received if claims are not made for 15 years.
They will then tell you about the different cancers that affect women nowadays. You will ask them to send you some information on the insurance policy but then you will be asked for your bank details, as this offer is only available right now over the phone.
Could you ever imagine this call about one of your siblings in trouble with the police or other authorities.
The culprits make calls often on prepaid cell phones, which are difficult to track, generally to elderly people, falsely claiming to be police officers or lawyers dealing with a son or daughter in trouble, and demand cash be transferred quickly into a bank account to save their child.
Sometimes they pretend to be the children themselves. Such crimes have grown so common they're called ``It's me, it's me'' fraud.
I could go on for ever writing down the scams of today, tomorrow there will be a new one out.
Just remember the following:
It is quite easy for someone to set up their own Internet web site, covering subjects from health insurance plans, financial investment opportunities, get rich quick schemes, stock market investments, currency trading etc etc.
Replicated Web sites are recreated so thoroughly it can take experts some time to confirm they are actually a fraud.
So beware, DO NOT give money to people you do not know, investigate the Company, checkout their credentials from reliable establishments, the physical address of its headquarters, not a post box office number, registration of a Company with http://www.companies-house.gov.uk/ And any other method you can think of.
Do not let the above put you off using the genuine services offered by legitimate companies.
Just use your common sense when approached by people, or using services from the Internet.
The saying goes " you get nothing for free in this life" so if you suspect something is amiss, then don’t pursue it.
Top Ten Tips For Safer Shopping online1---------All of your usual shopping rights apply online:............see www.consumer.gov.uk
2---------Know who you're dealing with: get the seller's phone number and postal address
3---------Be aware of terms and conditions: check payment and delivery details
4---------Keep records of what you order.
5---------EU Law protects you against fraudulent use of your payment card In
EU transactions: credit cards give you extra protection.
6---------Only give your payment card details over a secure connection, and never by
email: never disclose your PIN number to anyone, and never send it over the internet.
7---------You usually have at least 7 days to cancel an order and request a refund
from an EU retailer.
8---------Check your payment card statement carefully: you have at least 90 days
to report a suspect transaction.
9---------When you buy goods online from outside the EU:
·
you are an importer and may be liable to pay any Customs Duty and VAT;
·
err on the side of caution as it may be difficult to seek redress if problems arise
10--------If you have a problem, contact the seller then, if you need to, the payment
company, local Trading Standards Office and any 'trustmark' organisation
the seller is registered with.
Shopping online is new to the UK, to check you are using a secure payment site,both Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer use a safe connection called secure sockets layer (SSL). SSL scrambles all the information that passes between your browser and a secure server with high-gradeencryption. Not all Web sites use SSL, but responsible commercial sites license expensive secure server software from browser manufacturers to ensure the safety of commercial transactions. How can you tell if you're connected to one of them? There are two major signs. First, instead of seeing http:// at the beginning of the Web address, you'll see https:// (the extra s stands for secure). Second, on Netscape Navigator, the key icon at the bottom left of the screen will be bright yellow, intact, and on a dark blue background. Internet Explorer uses a less obvious icon: a little padlock in the middle of the status bar at the bottom of the screen. Either of these icons means that only you and the Web site at which you're shopping can see your detailsSSL does more than encrypt transactions. It also certifies the site you're dealing with. A small group of independent certifying authorities, including RSA Data Security (www.rsa.com) and VeriSign (www.verisign.com), validates commercial sites with digital certificates. Before your browser allows a secure server connection, it gets confirmation from the certifying authority that the connection is kosher. To find details, click on Netscape's key. Or in Internet Explorer right-click on the page and choose Properties. Pick the Security tab in the dialog box that pops up. The browser will show you certification details such as when the certificate was issued, where the company you're dealing with is based, and which certifying authority is vouchsafing the site.
So is online shopping truly as safe as mail-order or shopping direct? Well, you need to know whom you're dealing with no matter what shopping medium you use. But as long as you're aware of the potential dangers of giving out personal information online and take steps to check that the information will be secure, it's not much different from going to the shop direct-except the prices are often better and you never have to find a place to park.Just think! Banks use the same procedure to move huge amounts of money every second of the day, As long as use a secure connection to make your transaction all should be safe.
Safer shopping from,
Janet
www.uk-shop-and-buy.co.uk
