The most common rental scam currently is the fake listing rental scam. In this scam, the scammer will post a listing on a common platform, such as Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist, with the intention of collecting application fees, not renting the home. In fact, there is no actual rental, to begin with. The scammer is simply trying to collect application fees, then they'll delete the listing. How to spot a rental scam [...]
Online scammers use fake profiles to trick innocent people into giving out personal information and some of these fake profiles can seem very real. Scammers take their time creating a great profile and making the victim feel comfortable before attempting to extract money from them. With the potential for any online profile to be fake, what are some red flags to look out for? They only have one photo, no photos, or mismatching photos. [...]
There are several reasons why missing persons cases are so difficult. Either the missing person has purposely disappeared, or their disappearance suggests that they were kidnapped. In either scenario, private investigators will have to utilize all of their resources in order to track down the individual online and hopefully locate them unharmed. Here are four methods that can be utilized to track down missing individuals online. Searching public records Private investigators are able to [...]
Fraudulent chargebacks are a serious threat to e-commerce businesses of all sizes. Even if you provide the most personal customer service, customers may still take advantage of your company and its policies. A chargeback occurs when a customer calls their bank or credit card company to dispute a purchase. If the purchase was made with a debit card, the money is returned to the customer's bank account, and you are charged a fee from [...]
An asset search is the research, analysis, and documentation of various types of records to determine the assets owned by an individual, group of individuals, or organization. Asset searches are used for a number of reasons including determining the wealth of individuals who owe you money from a judgment or determining the assets of an estate or searching for hidden assets in a divorce case. An asset is anything that has monetary value and [...]
Blackmail email scams, also known as extortion scams, are schemes used by fraudsters to extort money from individuals. Blackmail email scams are found not only in email messages but also on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and many other social platforms. How can you spot this type of scam? The scam goes something like this... Out of the blue, you receive a concerning email from an unknown sender. The sender will say that they have compromising [...]
So why do people embezzle money and what causes a person in a company or an employee to steal from their employer to divert funds or to just generally commit embezzlement? Well, there's a four-step process for a person to get to the point where they embezzled money. Obviously, the first one usually is that they notice that there's a lot of money flying around. A lot of consumers, employees, and individuals [...]
Bank accounts are commonly targeted by scammers, who want to access your personal details. They usually do this by pretending to be a legitimate company or an authority figure. Banks and authorities provide useful information online in order to help people access their accounts safely. This information is used by scammers instead. Phishing Emails Some scammers will send you emails pretending to be your bank telling you that you need to immediately log in [...]
Have you recently received a text message from Amazon confirming an amount for an order you didn't place? If so, it's very likely that it wasn't Amazon that contacted you. Amazon text scams are on the rise and attempt to phish for customer information or get users to download malware to their devices. The Amazon text scam goes something like this... Out of the blue, you receive a text message that says something along [...]
The online dating scam is a ruthless type of online scam where money is stolen from the victim during an intimate relationship with a stranger they have been romantically communicating with over the internet. Online dating scams are becoming more and more popular as more people turn to the digital world to find love. Many victims do not associate this type of crime with romance and are not aware that they have become victims [...]
