AG Warns Consumers About Recent Surge in Various Scams

HARRISBURG - Attorney General Tom Corbett is warning Pennsylvania consumers to be wary of various financial scams, including bogus international lottery and sweepstakes prizes, along with deceptive work-at-home and job-related schemes.

"Consumers are being bombarded with 'easy money' offers, only to see their hopes and their money disappear into the hands of con artists and thieves," Corbett said. "Calls and complaints about fraudulent international lotteries and bogus job offers have more than doubled over the past year as scam artists target consumers who may be searching for part-time work or tempted by an unexpected prize."

Corbett said lottery and sweepstakes scams come in many different forms - some claim that consumers were selected for the prize because their names were entered in an international drawing, while others are supposedly linked to contests intended to reward consumers for the use of a debit card or credit card.

"The stories told by these scam artists come in many different forms, but nearly all of these bogus contests operate in the same way," Corbett said. "The 'prize notification' typically includes a check for several thousand dollars, which consumers are asked to immediately deposit into their bank account and then wire-transfer a similar amount to the contest operators in order to pay 'taxes' and other 'fees' necessary to release their larger prize."

Corbett said the checks that are included in these bogus lottery offers appear authentic and may include watermarks, holograms and other markings intended to enhance their "official" appearance. Despite their appearance, these checks are counterfeit, altered, stolen or otherwise worthless, and consumers who deposit the checks and wire-transfer money will eventually be required to return any missing money to their bank.

"These criminals are counting on the fact that victims will find it hard to resist a realistic looking check for several thousand dollars, especially when that check is supposedly the first installment of a much larger prize," Corbett said. "They also know that it may take days or weeks before the checks are identified as worthless, by which time the scam artists have already collected their money and moved on to another location."

Corbett urged consumers to avoid any sort of contest that requires consumers to wire-transfer money in order to release a much larger prize.

"Legitimate lotteries withhold all state and federal taxes, along with any other fees, before they distribute the prize winnings, so there's no need for consumers to ever send money to lottery operators," Corbett said. "Additionally, it is extremely unlikely that consumers will win a lottery or sweepstakes that they have not physically entered and federal law prohibits U.S. citizens from participating in foreign lotteries."

Work-at-home Schemes

Corbett noted that there has been a dramatic jump in the number of consumer complaints about part-time employment or work-at-home schemes since the start of this year. The most common subjects of complaints include various check-cashing and package-delivery schemes, along with the "mystery shopper" program, which Corbett began warning consumers about in February 2008.

"Using classified ads, email messages and websites, criminals are searching for victims looking to supplement their incomes with easy part-time or work-at-home jobs," Corbett said. "The scams typically offer the chance to earn substantial money for easy tasks, such as cashing a check, sending a package or shopping."

In check-cashing schemes, consumers often respond to ads offering work-at-home employment processing checks for an overseas business. Consumers who respond to the ads are typically told that they will be working for a company that needs assistance processing small payments from clients. Consumers are asked to deposit numerous checks in their personal bank account and then wire-transfer the money to the business - often keeping 10% to 20% of the total deposit amount as payment for their services. The checks that consumers deposit are eventually identified as stolen or counterfeit, leaving consumers responsible for repaying their bank for any missing funds.

In the package-delivery scam, consumers are typically told that they are being hired by a foreign company that needs assistance shipping packages from the U.S. to overseas addresses. Scam artists often claim that customs regulations or international postage rates make it economically attractive to send these items from residential addresses in the U.S. Consumers receive computers, electronic equipment and other expensive items, shipped to their homes, and are instructed to repackage those items and send them to a foreign address. In these situations, the merchandise it typically being purchased with stolen credit cards and consumers become unsuspecting participants in an international theft scheme.

In the mystery shopper scheme, consumers are offered a high-paying part time job evaluating how stores treat their customers. Consumers who respond are told that they must first complete a training program, which includes using a wire-transfer service like Western Union or MoneyGram to send several thousand dollars to a "training officer." The mystery shopper jobs do not exist and any money that is sent to the scam artist is lost.

Corbett encouraged consumers to avoid any employment-related offer that seems "too good to be true."

"In nearly every job-related scam, consumers will be asked to wire-transfer money to their 'employer' - a clear warning sign of a scam," Corbett said. "Additionally, consumers will often be encouraged to keep their activities secret, or are told their services are needed to help a business save money by avoiding bank fees, customs inspections, shipping restrictions, or other regulations."

Consumers with questions or complaints about scams or other consumer issues can contact the Attorney General's Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-800-441-2555 or file an online consumer complaint using the Attorney General's Web site.