[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYpDtYah25k]Now that holiday shopping season has officially begun, it’s important to be on the lookout for scams. We are going to take a brief look at some simple rules of fraud prevention to help this process along:
- Haste Makes Waste – Speed kills…your savings! Don’t ever let yourself be pressured into making a snap decision.
- Seek and You Shall Find – Before buying anything or dealing with anyone, put it in a search engine, along with words like “review”. Also, you can search for words such as “current scams” and “fraud alerts” as well. Finally, check with the BBB online.
- You Can’t Get Something for Nothing – If you feel you are getting something for nothing, you are likely the product and not the customer. As we recently found out with Facebook, free access to things is often at the expense of your privacy and information.
- Use Tax Dollar-Paid Protection – You’ve already paid your taxes; put them to good use by using organizations such as the FTC and the CFPB. Their websites are extremely informative and helpful.
- Say No To Robocalls, Unsolicited Emails – In most cases robocalls are illegal, and any email without an opt-out is illegal as well. Why would you ever deal with someone who is breaking the law to contact you?
Bottom line, be aware as a consumer. Most of these scams can be spotted with a trained eye and with a dose of common sense.