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October 28 2011
Those who toil away on free-to-play Facebook games may have built up a false sense of security as they blindly click on all the permission buttons in order to get to the good stuff. But an ad that claims to offer Facebookers access to a free Mario Kart game is a trap, like one of those upside down question blocks in the real version of the game.
Sophos Naked Security reports a scam masquerading as access to the non-existent game is popping up as status updates and messages, tricking users into filling out a seemingly endless stream of online surveys and possibly asking users to install dubious software, as well as an offer to attempt to win a non-existent "iPhone 5."
If you run across this offer as a message or post, you'll probably want to delete it to stop it from spreading.
Mario Kart on Facebook? Fast-spreading scam hits many users' accounts [Sophos Naked Security via Kotaku]
October 14 2011
The Hunger Games is a wildly popular series of books about a dystopian future where the government spies on your every move and teenagers square off in a to-the-death tournament for the amusement of the upper-class residents of the capitol city. The books are soon to become a big-time Hollywood franchise and as part of the much-hyped countdown to that release, millions of people are getting in on the viral marketing by logging onto a website that creates a unique badge for each user. But are these people looking at the permissions they're signing away when they log in?
We've received complaints from people who went to TheCapitol.pn to take part in the badge-making fun, only to find out that they are required to use either Facebook or Twitter to log in. And then when you click either of those options, you're greeted with a litany of permissions you need to grant the site.
Signing up through Twitter allows this site to:
Read Tweets from your timeline.
See who you follow, and follow new people.
Update your profile.
Post Tweets for you.
Signing up via Facebook gives the site the following permissions:
Access my basic information
(name, profile picture, gender, networks, user ID, list of friends, and any other information you've made public)
Send me email
Post to Facebook as me
Access my data any time
Access my custom friend lists
Access my profile information
(Birthday and Current City)
Access my photos
Access information people share with me
(Birthdays, Family Members and Relationship Statuses and Current Cities)
One person who made a badge on the site tells Consumerist she was originally able to sign up and create hers using just an e-mail but confirms that the site has been updated in the days since and that this option no longer appears.
September 27 2011
You might think that it's safe to walk around as a tourist with your big fancy SLR or DSLR camera as long as the strap is around your neck. But who needs the whole camera when the lens itself is worth a bunch of coin? That quick-release button means it's easy on, easy off, and easy to miss the pickpocketing if you're distracted. The BBC's The Real Hustle shows how the con goes down.
In the video, a man approaches a tourist with a nice camera and asks for map directions. The mark opens the map and holds it at arm level. While the map covers the top of the camera, the thief sneaks under and lightly unhinges the lens and pockets it. Sneaky.
When out and about, be mindful of not just the camera strap around your neck, also keep track of the lens on the camera body.
Lens thieves ruin the day [pixiq] (Thanks to Chuck!)
August 25 2011
On March 31, a 73-year-old man in Wisconsin called a plumber to fix a clogged toilet. He says that a day later, on April 1, the plumbers handed him a bill for $13,698, but it was no April Fools Joke. Of course, this has all ended up in court, where the customer alleges employees at the plumbing business are told it's part of their job to upsell additional work to the consumer.
The lawsuit also claims that the plumbers talk customers into financing expensive plumbing work that may not be necessary in the first place.
According to the plaintiff, the plumbers first told him that his clogged toilet needed to be replaced -- which he states was a false claim by the defendants. And after looking that the pipes in the rest of his house, the plumbers allegedly told the man that most them would also need replacing.
From Courthouse News:
The plumbers told him a second toilet had to be replaced because it was loose and "costing him money;" that a bathroom sink "had to be replaced because it had a small stain and a sticky handle;" that a hot water heater "needed to be replaced because it was 'outdated' and 'costing him money;" and that the area near a sink "needed to be replaced because it was not 'up to code.'"
Per the complaint the man said he "had not been experiencing problems with any of the plumbing in his home with the exception of the clogged toilet," and that he "never asked for additional work and even told Flat Rate that he did not have to funds to pay for any replacement plumbing."
This is when, according to the suit, the plumbers brought up the financing option and application. The man says the plumbers told him the financing would have two years of deferred interest, but the application only mentioned one year. He claims that it also mentioned an "attached credit card agreement" though he says there was no such thing attached.
Regardless, after filling out the paperwork, the customer was now the proud holder of a Kwik Comfort credit account, to which the plumbers charged $6,743.
And then they showed up again the next day to give him the bad news that "even more of his plumbing needed to be replaced and that they could help him get additional financing to pay for the work."
Unfortunately, GE Money Bank, the issuer of the Kwik Comfort credit, wouldn't increase his credit limit to cover the additional $6,955 of work. Instead, the man gave them a $3,000 money order and the plumbers said they would put the balance on the credit card next year.
The plaintiff says the plumbers didn't get a permit for the work until after it was done and that a city inspector says their work violates building code.
So please, please, please let this be reminder to anyone who gets work done on your house, even if it's a clogged drain. Before you pay anyone thousands of dollars to do work -- especially if you're not sure whether or not it's necessary -- get multiple estimates and do reference checks on anyone you consider.
$13,698 to Unclog a Toilet? [CourthouseNews.com]
January 31 2011
In a twist to the usual ATM skimmer scam, there's a new report from Krebs on Security about crooks who put the skimmer inside the bank door-lock. When you swipe your card to get inside, they grab your digits. A camera hidden behind a mirror above the ATM and pointed down at the keypad records your PIN code when you punch it in.
Savvy Consumerist followers know how to check an ATM for out-of-place parts, pinholes, and jiggly readers that can indicate it's been compromised. But now that's not enough, you have to be paranoid about your whole surroundings. Even if the ATM is inside the bank you can't feel totally safe. One way to protect yourself is to cover your PIN with your hand. Of course that won't help if the thieves have put devices underneath the keypads to record your digits. There's no such thing as 100% secure.
In a behavioral science flourish, besides the door lock and mirror camera, the thieves also put a "out of order" sign over one of the ATMs to make sure all customers went to the ATM with the camera over it.
ATM Skimmers That Never Touch the ATM [Krebs on Security via BoingBoing] (Thanks to Jim!)
January 20 2011
Never at a loss for new ways to make more money off its overeager fan base, the NFL will charge $200 for spectators to watch the Super Bowl on a giant screen outside the stadium.
ESPN reports the offer is being extended to Dallas Cowboys season ticket holders. The tickets come in blocks of four and come with sets of game programs and scarves, as well as a parking pass.
Face values for in-stadium tickets range from $600 to $1,900. Scalpers will charge significantly more.
How much would you pay for a ticket to the game that didn't actually get you into the game?
NFL: 'We've never done this before' [ESPN]
(Thanks, Daniel!)
October 07 2010
No matter what you may think of the health benefits of a paid companion or of an XXX-rated DVD, the New York State's Tax Appeals Tribunal has made it clear -- hookers, pills and porn do not count as tax-deductible medical expenses.
The tribunal's ruling comes after a retired Brooklyn lawyer had tried to deduct nearly $300,000 -- from just his NY state taxes! -- between 2002 and 2004 "for amounts paid for erotic materials, sexually related publications, male enhancement pills, and miscellaneous services performed by prostitutes."
The same lawyer had been shown the door by the U.S. Tax Court last year, when they disallowed a $120,000 write-off on his federal taxes for 2004 and 2005. In that situation, the man, who claimed he was fighting depression by pursuing "a holistic approach to medicine," was fined an additional $4,000-related penalty for not knowing better.
The Tax Appeals Tribunal's decision added another $23,000 to the lawyer's bill in interest and penalties, but he says they might as well try to get blood from a stone.
"Under New York law, I am insolvent," the lawyer told Forbes. "I have no assets. I rent. I live on a pension that can't be seized."
No Medical Deduction For Hookers and Porn, Judges Rule [Forbes.com]
June 29 2010
Reader Paul was trying to enjoy fried pop tarts at an outdoor city festival in his hometown when his debit card was nearly stolen by a fake ATM. Someone had modified an arcade cabinet and placed it outside a bank where it had captured the overflow traffic spilling out of the bank lobby.
Paul writes:
I read the post about the fake ATM machines and wanted you to know that I got nearly burned by one.
I cannot give out a lot of information due to the ongoing investigation, now an FBI investigation, about my incident.
A few weeks ago there was a weekend outdoor city festival going on with thousands of people roaming the kiosks, tents, carnival rides and eateries. Naturally they only accepted cash.
Since I don’t normally carry cash I went down the street to large chain bank to use the ATM. The indoor ATM and the drive through one was jam packed and with the 90+ degree temperature most people were opting to wait in the lobby of the indoor ATM. There was a small line with a stand-alone ATM sitting outside the bank against the wall. Nothing seemed out of place, just seemed convenient to have one at that moment. The girl in front of me and I started some chit chat about this ATM and she noted she goes to this bank all the time and has never seen this ATM before. We concluded that the bank may have added it the day before to get a ton of ATM fees off non-bank members during the festival. We laughed but not for long. The guy in front of her started cursing up a storm when he tried to withdraw $100 and only got one $20 bill. I looked at the ATM and noted that it looked too familiar to me
it was a modified ARCADE CABINET!! The screen was basically a TV screen and number pad lifted from another ATM machine and a real (definitely not fake) card reader installed very well next to the screen.
Long story short, I gave my statement to the county police and yesterday I was brought in for questioning by an FBI agent and I found out what was going on. The FBI agent and I have heavy IT backgrounds and he revealed that the ATM was simple setup: TV, cheap PC, speakers, REAL card reader and a WIFI router. The best part, it actually had a real cash dispenser and actually gave out REAL cash (found a real $20 bill jammed in the dispenser).
The scam works like this:
Build and deploy a fake ATM, let it dispense real money not to tip off anyone, sit in a van down the street with a laptop and have the fake ATM feed credit card numbers and PIN’s to it over WIFI. Once the money runs out, just dip out.
Turns out that the machine probably had about $2000 in it, not bad for the potential money that can be stolen later and the fake ATM couldn’t have cost more than $1000 to make. The bank logo, the ATM menus can easily be copied from image files off the internet and setup to look real.
The agent also told me that this sort of thing is happening more often. Some of them dispense counterfeit bills, real money or errors out saying it is out of order (but gets the card information and PIN). Best ones so far he said are how ballsy the crooks get by putting these ATM’s in malls and gas stations. Also they are also finding ATM’s solely to do “Fast Deposits.” Basically it says that it will immediately credit the deposit (cash only, naturally) to your account no matter when you put the money in, even weekends. Those are the worst since it asks for your card, PIN, savings/checking account number to be entered at the machine.
My particular incident is under Federal investigation because some leads point it to an international Asian crime gang that has a chapter (is that what they’re called?) in my area. Those Triads
always getting on my nerves.
The FBI agent gave me some tips that I think you guys might want to pass on to your readers:
- Only use familiar ATMs you've used before
- If it looks fake, it probably is
- If you get counterfeit money, call the cops immediately
- If you realize you've used a fake ATM, call your financial institution immediately to put a fraud alert on your account
LOVE the Consumerist!!
-PaulWhile you're on the alert for fake ATMS, and boning up on how to spot ATM skimmer devices, be sure to also check out these 5 credit card scams to beware.
PREVIOUSLY: Fake ATMs Drain Your Account Dry
June 11 2010
Doug, who sent in this photo of what showed up on his caller ID when a roboscammer rang him up, possibly has the most effective phone screening system ever. Or maybe it's just that the scamming company on the other line is at least honest about how it defrauds people.
He writes:
When I got home today I had one voice mail. It was a robo caller telling me about refinancing my house. My caller ID showed this as the name of the robo caller. How appropriate. I thought you might like it.
Doug provided the phone number that was associated with the label, which I checked and it definitely seemed scamerrific. Has anyone else ever gotten a caller ID indicator like this?
May 27 2010
Usually when we write about taxi-related horror stories, it's cab drivers trying to scam passengers out of cash. But this time the tables have been turned in big way, after a driver in Ohio was stiffed on a $1,427 fare.
According to the driver's complaint filed with the police, he picked up a couple in Jackson, TN, and dropped them off over 10 hours later in Lorain, OH. News reports put the distance at around 500 miles, but Google Maps estimates it at more than 600 miles.
Regardless, the driver said the couple had agreed to pay the $1,427 fare for the drive, even signing a billing statement to that effect. The woman passenger had told the driver they were going to Lorain because of a family emergency.
While he waited for his passengers to pay up, they instead hopped into a minivan and drove off without handing over any cash.
As of yesterday, no charges had been filed and no specific suspects had been named. According to reports, police spoke to a woman at the address the couple had originally given the driver. That woman said the female passenger was her niece, but that she had no way of contacting her.
Not Fare! Cabbie Stiffed After 500-Mile Trip to Lorain [Fox8.com]
May 04 2010
A new Craigslist scam is targeting your cellphone. Sellers report getting a message from a "serious buyer" who is busy "at work" and "can't contact" them now. The fictional buyer says they "use a website that can save information" and asks the seller to "leave your phone number there" so they can call you after they "get home to arrange a meeting." Based on one users' experience, the site, which has already been pulled, then starts cramming $9.95/month monthly charges onto any cellphone number that gets entered. Here is one of the scam emails:
"Hi, I'm very interested in your item and would like to pay in cash.While most Consumerist readers wouldn't fall for such a ridiculous request, the naive, inexperienced, or desperate could fall afoul.I'm at work currently, so I can't contact you before I get home.
However, I use a website that can save information so you can leave your phone number there.
Send me your cell phone number here: www.inf-saver.me.pn
I'm a serious buyer and need this. I will call you after I get home to arrange a meeting.
Jennifer
QSW16S1MFYYACEWJA1TJ75HTBHGFQZ
(Thanks to c-side!)
December 22 2009
Scams That Came Of Age In 2009
Get-poor-quickly schemes abounded in 2009, and Mark Huffman Consumer Affairs sifted through the best of the best to come up the top 10 scams of 2009.
Topping his list are "free trials" that were actually phishing schemes meant to nab your personal info and run up charges in your name. Huffman writes:
One common pitch is for a "free" trial-sized bottle of teeth whitener. The consumer provides credit card information to pay a $2 fee for shipping. That seems like a reasonable request in order to get a free sample, right?
Wrong. Once these people have your credit card information, they can -- and do -- put all kinds of charges on it, claiming the consumer signed up for a membership club or committed to buying a case of the stuff. Chances are there’s something buried in fine print that obligates you but regardless, you're stuck with trying to get the charge taken off your card.
Others on the list are acai berry extract offers and debt reduction offers. What were your least favorite scams of the year?
Top 10 Scams Of 2009 [Consumer Affairs]
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