September 8, 2009
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BBB Warns Small Businesses, Pt.3
Email and newspapers; a haven for friendly fraudPrevious...
Email has also become a common place for criminals to carry out credit card fraud. This latest email scam generally occurs after the thief has obtained stolen credit card numbers and is seeking to use them to make fraudulent purchases. After searching for businesses to prey upon, the thief cleverly contacts the small business owner with an email claiming to be interested in making a large purchase of merchandise or building materials. Some examples are fencing contractors or small remodeling contractors. The thief asks the contractor for a cost of materials quote for a specific job. They tell the contractor they want the goods shipped overseas and request a shipping quote as well. The criminal gives the stolen card information to secure the materials, the contractor orders the goods, the supplier ships the merchandise overseas, and the thief sells it for cash. Many of these thieves are very clever about finding shipping addresses that would be very difficult to trace and costly for a credit card company to pursue.Another growing problem exists in the newspapers and online news sources. Credit card thieves are targeting individuals running advertisement in the classified ads. If you advertise items for sale and post a contact phone number, you are the typical target for these thieves. Better Business Bureaus want to remind all individuals as well as small and large business owners to take precaution whenever addressing circumstances involving credit cards. Like banks, newspapers and print resources do not call customers requesting confirmation or personal information.
Don't ever give out any credit card or personal information to anyone who calls you and solicits it. If you do not know the individual over the phone and should receive such an inquiry, tell the caller to hang up and that you'll call the business, such as a newspaper, to discuss the necessary information.