Sweepstakes Scam in
Springfield
Our SMP partners in
Springfield notified us this week of a fake Publishers Clearinghouse
sweepstakes scam. An older Springfield woman received a phone call
from someone telling her that she won the Publisher's Clearinghouse
sweepstakes, but that she needs to pay taxes on her winnings before
she receives them. The caller instructed the woman to go to Wal-Mart
and purchase a Green Dot card worth $500,
then call the
scammer back to give them the number on the card.
Our tip here is
simple – you should never have to pay any money up front to claim
any kind of ‘winnings.' Offers of a prize after a payment are always
scams – the scammer in this case will be long gone once they obtain
the number from the Green Dot card and spend the money.
Consulting Scam in
Bloomington
Our SMP partners in
Bloomington received a letter this week offering "consulting"
services in which a company will help "save money" on services like
phone, internet, and television services. The letter uses religious
rhetoric and does not give a clear description of what the company
does, it gives personal contact information (emails and cell phones)
instead of company information, and the company is not listed on the
Better Business Bureau's website at all. This is clearly a scam. We
recommend that consumers take the following steps before doing
business with someone: