Government Grant Scams

The "free money" scam has been around almost as long as the human species. It has more variations than a bulldog has wrinkles but you can count on one thing: the government (any government) does not simply give money away to individuals. Anyone who tells you differently has larceny in his heart. If you give him your bank account number, he will soon have your funds in his pocket.

“Don’t provide personal or financial information over the phone or Internet to any company you do not know or trust.”

“Remember that when you give your checking account information to a company, you don’t have the same recourse as you would for charges to a credit card. In addition, you may not have control over the amount or the number of withdrawals that are made.”

“Many individuals are more than willing to use any ploy to gain access to your personal and private information for the purposes of identity theft. Don’t let high pressure or scare tactics lure you into giving out information to someone you aren’t sure about.”

           Counterfeit Cashier’s

                        Check Scam

Some sellers of high priced goods are getting requests from bidders in foreign countries (often in Africa) to accept foreign cashier’s checks as payment for their items. Some of the requests offer to “overpay” for an item, and ask the seller to wire the overpayment back to the buyer through services such as Western Union or MoneyGram.

We urge all sellers to use extreme caution when accepting foreign cashier’s checks for high priced goods, as such foreign checks may take weeks or months to clear and may be counterfeit.

Sellers should never accept overpayments from buyers for items where the buyer is asking to be reimbursed for overpayment. If you receive such offers, please report it to eBay immediately.

                          Avoiding

        Investment Scams

There is increasing number of people defrauded by investment scams, probably made easier because of all the money everyone is making in the stock market. But before making any investment, you should ask the following 10 questions:

1. Is the investment audited by one of the major international accounting firms? Real investments are audited by one of the large international accounting firms.

2. Is the investment registered with your state securities commission or with the SEC? Avoid unregistered investments.

3. Is the investment listed in the Wall Street Journal, London Financial Times, or similar well-known financial publication? Real investments will be listed in a major financial publication, or findable in some other major financial resource.

4. Is everything about the investment out in the open? Real investments are completely "transparent".

5. Are you allowed to seek independent legal counsel prior to making the investment? Real investments will encourage you to seek independent legal and financial advice prior to making the investment.

6. Is the seller licensed with your state securities commission or with the NASD?

7. Does the promoter have a good background? A scam artist will often be using an alias, and will often have a criminal background (though not always).

8. Does the investment "make sense"?

9. What does law enforcement say about this investment? Don't hesitate to call your state security commissioner or attorney general, before you invest.

10. Is it too good to be true?