October Scams And Frauds Reported to New Mexico Attorney General Kings Office
Published November 2nd, 2007
November 01, 2007 — The following is an overview of what has been reported to the Attorney General’s Office since the beginning of the month.
Financial Institution Scams:
Several First National Bank of Santa Fe customers have been the targets of a “phising scamâ€. Northern New Mexico residents reported receiving e-mails telling them their account had been temporarily suspended due to billing failure. The customer is told in the e-mail to click on a link that is provided to start the update process.
If Bank of Santa Fe customers receive an e-mail like this, do not give out any personal information and forward the email to The Bank of Santa Fe, abuse@1stnationalbanknm.com.
Bank of America customers continue to receive email notifications that their accounts have temporarily been suspended. The customer is told in the email to click on a link that is provided and fill out a secure online form.
If Bank of America customers receive an email like this, do not give out any personal information. The Bank of America’s website asks customers to report a suspicious email that uses Bank of America’s name; you can forward it to abuse@bankofamerica.com.
Internet Fraud Scams:
Many New Mexico residents selling items on eBay and Craig’s List report receiving counterfeit checks from “buyers†they do business with. If you are selling items on either web site, the New Mexico Attorney General encourages you to take the check you receive to your financial institution to be advised on how to proceed.
Federal Trade Commission E-mail Scam:
A bogus e-mail is currently circulating saying it is from the FTC, referencing a “complaint†filed with the FTC against the e-mail’s recipient. A virus will be downloaded if the attachment is opened and links are followed in the e-mail.
As with any suspicious e-mail, the Federal Trade Commission warns recipients not to click on the links and not to open any attachments within this email.
Counterfeit Check Scams:
New Mexico banks were alerted to several different counterfeit checks schemes that were reported to the office by consumers. The checks had the names of real businesses on them, though the checks did not originate from those businesses. Most checks were accompanied by letters stating the recipient had won a lottery or drawing and the check was included to cover fees needed to claim the winnings. The letter urged that the check be deposited and a large portion of the check wired back to cover costs. This is a scam. Legitimate lotteries do not require a winner to pay to receive winnings.
Nigerian and Lottery Scams:
New Mexico residents continue to report scams involving banks and individuals that are out of the country. In one example, the scammer is asking for financial assistance for a family member who has died. The scam offers to send large sums of money to the recipient in exchange for their help.
This is a typical scam received via email. If you receive a plea for assistance involving financial transactions of any kind, please do not respond.
Consumers continue to receive “official notifications†of lottery winnings accompanied by a check. Recipients are asked to “kindly†deposit the check, allowing 24 to 48 hours for the check to clear, following with a phone number to contact “your claims broker.†These checks are fraudulent; if you deposit the check it will bounce; if you wire any money overnight, you will lose the money. If you receive a notification like this, do not respond.
Consumers may report scams and frauds they experience by forwarding suspicious emails to publicinformationoff@ago.state.nm.us.
Source: New Mexico Attorney General
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