Popular Scams Information And Prevention Methods

By Odessa Dessi

Check cashing fraud is rampant and has been very difficult for authorities to curtail. With the advancement of copy machines it is easy for a dishonest person to alter or create a check look-alike and then make copies that looks authentic. The use of counterfeit checks are seen most often in at-home businesses, on ad sites, and elsewhere through international contact made on the Internet.

Identification of a check cashing fraud is fairly easy in that one will be asked to deposit a check through their banking account for a larger amount that required then to forward the extra cash via Western Union or some other money transfer site. This can be advertised as a work at home job, rental, or the sale of an item or service.

For the most part, you can't really tell it's a fake check until the bank can verify it to be counterfeit, which doesn't happen until it's deposited, and you can't contact the other person. Since international funds often get held for a long while, you can deposit a number of checks and withdraw cash without anyone being the wiser until the week or so it takes to verify the check.

Those who defraud others using bank accounts are very creative when it comes to accessing information. Once money is sent through a money transfer site, much personal information is shared which can be utilized to create counterfeit forms of identification as well as banking information which can be used to clean out an account.

As we touched on earlier, these scam artists like to utilize work at home ads to lure their prey. One of these fake work at home jobs may require an individual to deposit international company checks, keep your payment of 10% for your pay, and send the rest of the cash back to the company. One such scam operates under the name WalMart, INC., which has no affiliation with the WalMart stores that that most of us shop at regularly. Check cashing scammers will also use sites such as Careerbuilder.com, Craiglist, and Gadgets Ltd., as a vehicle to contact victims, so you must be sure to always carefully investigate any apparent opportunity.

There are many scams currently going on with check fraud. One of the scams regarding check cashing has occurred with people being contacted and told they have won, or come into, a large amount of money. They are told that a money order or cashier's check will be sent for more than the amount they are to receive. They are asked to send back the difference through a wire transfer site immediately.

The con artist's objective in a check cashing scam, is to gain vital information from a bank, that will allow them to access the bank account and withdraw all funds, while simultaneously convincing their innocent target to accept counterfeit checks in exchange for cash. You can protect yourself from check cashing fraud by being able to identify people calling you through the use of telephone look up services such as tele-search.com/Nebraska/Clarks.htm, so that you can know who is behind that call or check.

There is an agency known as World Law Direct, who handle cases of international check cashing fraud, so if you fear that you may be a victim of this crime, you may contact this unit, but their response time may be up to several years. And, after waiting for justice, you will likely find that none of your money will be returned. - 31381

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