What is a Ponzi Scheme scam?

Ponzi Scheme is false returns on an investment in order to get the confidence of an investor. A scam artist may pay money out of their own pockets in order to convince an investor to give them more access to their portfolio. This particular scam relies on your natural desire to make easy money. This particular scam is named after Charles Ponzi who all though was not the first, was possibly the worst. At the beginning of the century he swindled around $500,000 from investors, and was eventually caught and spent three and a half years in prison. The scam has many variations and may look very different, here is some things to look for:

• Any promise of a return higher than 0.1% return per day.
• A request for a much higher investment after an initial successful campaign.
• You have never heard of the investment company

The bottom line with investing and letting anyone have access to your portfolio is do your research. Scam artists are very clever and charming and can fool even savvy investors.

Beware of get rich quick scams and pyramid schemes

The way these get rich quick scams work is by getting you to give them your money. Basically you buy their program and they will teach you how to rip other people off. Its kind of like the add in the paper that says send me 5 dollars and I will send you the secret to making a million dollars. The secret is to put a add in the paper saying send me 5 dollars and I will send you the secret to making a million dollars. Sadly the target market for get rich schemes and pyramid schemes are the poor, the elderly, or people who are already in debt. And if you want to make money on a pyramid scheme you should start one yourself, otherwise you are just making money for other people. These are examples of common schemes:

1. Buy real estate for pennies on the dollar.
2. Wealth building seminars.
3. Risk free stock market schemes.
4. Muli-level marketing (pyramid scheme).
5. Secret ways to make money that no one knows about.
6. Psychic tips or betting tips.

Here are examples of phrases to run from:

1. Get in at the top.
2. Send us money and we will help you make money.
3. Business opportunities “they”  don’t want you to know about.
4. I made $10,000 dollars in 30 days, you can to.
5. Make money from home.
6. Want to make millions working part time?
7. If I can do it so can you.
8. You don’t need any education.

Remember the scam protectors golden rule; if it sounds to good to be true then it probably is.

Top 7 sign’s you’re getting scammed!

Here is a quick list of phrases you should watch out for:

1. You must act know!
2. You need to reset your passwords!
3. You owe back taxes!
4. You have won some money (variation is you have unclaimed money) !
5. You get a high yield return with no risk!
6. Do you know who this is?
7. You have to send your payment via money order or wire transfer!

For a more comprehensive list download our telemarketers cheat sheet. Great for high risk family members, laminate it and keep it close to the phone. Telemarketers cheat sheet

What to look for on e-mail viruse’s

I. Emails from people trying to infect your system and steal your friends’ email addresses for spam

I.1 Pictures of Osama Bin Laden hanging or Arnold Schwarzenegger’s suicide note I.2. Email from your system administrator or other familiar sender that says your email could not be delivered, or some similar statement.
I.3. Email with subject “Against!” or “Revenge”
I.4. Email with subject Re_ and body with animals or foto or other subjects

II. Emails from people trying to steal your identity (and your money)

II.1. Update Your Billing Information (from eBay)
II.2. Your account at eBay has been suspended
II.3. Your account at Wells Fargo has been suspended
II.4. Notification of US Bank Internet Banking
II.5. Attn: Citibank Update

III. Emails from people trying to fool you into hurting yourself or your friends and coworkers

III.1 Subject: “jdbg” Virus: how to detect and remove.

Information Technology

Killer for hire scam-Hitman scam, this one will creep you out!

Some of you might be thinking who would fall for this, but unfortunately some do. Fear is a very nasty weapon, and scam artist’s know it. Here is a sample e-mail threatening to kill the recipient if they do not pay them:

This is the only way I could contact you for now,I want you to be very careful about this and keep this secret with you until I make out space for us to se. You have no need of knowing who I am or where I am from.I know this may sound very surprising to you but it’s the situation.I have been paid some ransom in advance to terminate you with some reasons listed to me by my employer.It’s someone I beleive you call a friend, I have followed you closely for a while now and have seen that you are innocent of the accusations he leveled against you.Do not contact the police or try to send a copy of this to them,because if you do, I will know,and I might be pushed to do what I have been paid to do.Besides, this is the ist time I turn out to be a betrayer in my job.I took pity on you,that is why I have made up my mind to help you if you are willing to help yourself.

Now listen,I will arrange for us to see face to face,but before that, I need $12,000. I will come to your home or you determine where you wish we meet;I repeat, do not arrange for the cops and if you play hard to get, it will be extended to your family.Do not set any camera to cover us or set up any tape to record our conversation, my employer is in my control now. Payment details will be provided for you to make a part payment of $5000 first,which will serve as gurantee that you are ready to you co-orperate,then i will post a copy of the video tape that contains his request for me to terminate you which will be enough evidence for you to take any legal action against him before he employs another person for the job. You will pay the balance of $7000 once you receive the tape.

Warning; do not contact the police, make sure you stay indoors once it is 7.30pm until this whole thing is sorted out,if you neglect any of these warnimgs, you will have yourself to blame. You do not have much time, so get back to me immediately

Note:I will advise you keep this to yourself alone, not even a friend or a family member should know about it because it could be one of them.

Even when I know this is a scam I still get an eerie feeling. Also understand that if 99% of people will not comply, it still leaves that 1%. We need to get the word out before that 1% is left sick with worry. Note the poor English, it seems to be a reoccurring theme with a lot of scams.

Also check out our top 10 scam’s list, and our list of fraudulent websites list.

 

NASAA’s Senior Investor Resource Center

The North American Securities Administrators Association has the most thorough resource center on the web. In particular is their Investigation Form, if we could get this form out to everyone interested in investing, it could save consumers from a devastating financial blow. The form is laid out to ensure that all precaution’s are taken. Any reputable Investment firm will be happy to provide their potential customers with this information, as it is also in their best interest that investors ask for credentials. Here is a sample form,they also provide a printer friendly copy at their website NASAA.org

Seller/Agent Information
Seller/Agent Name:	______________________________________
Company/Business Name:	______________________________________
Company/Business Address:	______________________________________
Phone Number:	______________________________________
Today’s Date:	______________________________________

1. What products are you offering? (check all that apply)
Annuities	Securities
Living Trust	Estate Planning
Accounting	Other__________________________
2. Who regulates or licenses this product or service?
3. How does this product meet my investment objectives?
4. What are the risks?
5. What written information will I receive about this investment before making a decision?
Prospectus	Offering Memorandum
Most Recent Annual Report	Most Recent Quarterly or Interim Report
Recent News Releases	Research Reports
6. What license(s) do you hold that authorizes you to sell this product or service?
LICENSE TYPE	LICENSE INFORMATION
Insurance License	License No: ____________________________
Securities License	CRD No: ______________________________
Investment Advisor	License No: ____________________________ Corporation SEC
State Bar License	State Bar No:___________________________
Accountant License	CPA No: ______________________________
Real Estate License	DRE License No:________________________
Other	Explain: _______________________________

The grandchild scam; how low will they go?

This one starts with a simple phone call. Here is a sample phone call.

Scammer: Hi grandma!

Innocent senior: Hello

Scammer: Do you know who this is?

The senior will generally say one of their grandchildrens name, once they do the scammer says yes and will then tell the senior that they need money for an emergency (got in trouble, have to pay rent, car broke down). Stressing not to tell Mom because she will be mad at the grandchild.

Innocent Senior: Chris?

Scammer:yes, I have gotten into some financial trouble and need to borrow $800 dollars for my rent.

The scammer will then instruct them to send the money via money gram or western union.

Our main suggestion would be never to volunteer any information. This is hard when they feel it is a loving member of their family. This scam can only be stopped if we can get the word out. Share this story with a friend and ask them to do the same.

2nd annual Senior Summit; Investment scams!

This is the big one. If there is one scam that seniors should be talking about it is this one. The amount of money that is being stolen is astronomical. At the 2nd annual Senior Summit, Chris Hansen the Associate Executive Director at AARP, recited the statistic that three fourths of all assets in America comes from families in which the head of the household is over 50 years of age. One of the main topics discussed at the Summit was investment luncheons. These are luncheons set up by a group of so called financial advisor’s or investors, that target portfolios.

These are only a few of the highlights:

1. The salesmen will Try and gain your trust and then push for aggressive choices that pay them large incentives.
2. These salesmen advertise the luncheon or workshop as educational. Then when they get you there or a few days later they aggressively try and convince you to take action.
3. Just because someone shows you a certain license does not mean that they are legit, remember these people spend a good amount of time thinking of ways to take your money.

I am going to give you the hyper link for the Summit, and I do advise people watch the whole thing. Also send the link to friends and families, to local retirement communities, and senior centers.

2nd annual Senior Summit

Basic tips

Here are some tips you should always keep in mind when approached by phone, email, or even your front door:

1. Scam artist will appear nice, caring, and will try and gain your trust.
2. If it seems too good to be true then it probably is.
3. Bad people may have done research about you. They can find out who you bank with, who your insurance is with, what credit cards you have, what Internet provider you use, and even who your family members are.
4. Trust your instinct’s, if it doesn’t feel right then you need to do some research or have someone do it for you. Scammers will try and rush you and even confuse you. If they are legitimate then they will give you time.
5. Discuss protecting yourself with your friends and family. Being prepared can be your best defense.

Together we can make a stand and maybe frustrate the bad guys for once,

Chris Cator chris08@bendbroadband.com