by Robin Slade
Child-related identity theft is one of today’s fastest growing frauds. According to a recent report released by AllclearID, children are 35 times more likely to have their identities stolen than adults. The Federal Trade Commission reports about 8% of people under the age of 18 will have their identities stolen. Thieves are taking advantage of a child’s clean credit report to commit fraud. … Continue Reading
by Linda Vincent R.N. P.I.
As more and more baby boomers reach their golden years, more and more of them need the services of homecare and hospice agencies. This rapid influx is good for the industry, but agencies need to be as vigilant as ever in their hiring practices of caregivers.
Why? Because medical identity theft is on the rise, and homecare and hospice agencies are easy targets. … Continue Reading
Small businesses and consumers across the country are falling victim to the latest phishing scam that exploits BBB’s trusted name. The phishing emails – the fifth wave since Thanksgiving – uses BBB’s name and logo in an attempt to look like a notice of a newly filed complaint.
If you receive an email that looks like it is about a BBB complaint: … Continue Reading
Donald Martin Steffensen, 73, of Midvale, Utah was sentenced on January 27 for violating California’s Financial Elder Abuse and Grand Theft laws. The complaint alleged that while doing business as Senior Financial Benefits, Steffensen defrauded a 75-year-old Madera County resident. After selling his client an annuity, he directed the insurance company to send monthly benefits, totaling about $55,000 to his own address without the client’s knowledge. … Continue Reading
It’s always the fine print that trips us up. Then it’s only belatedly we find out that the “free trials” really aren’t so free. That’s one of the reasons I wrote yesterday (April 18th) about the Federal Trade Commission’s settlement with Green Millionaire LLC (see, “FTC Halts “Free Gas for Life” False Claims -$2 Million for Consumer Refunds”). We sometimes only learn that we unintentionally “ordered” the additional products or services when we see new credit card charges or bank account debits. … Continue Reading
The Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) is conducting a survey to study parent’s interaction with their children’s social media activity and mobile device usage. According to Nikki Junker, Social Media Coordinator for the ITRC, “As the Internet continues to become a larger part of everyday life, social media is becoming an increasingly pervasive activity for adults and children alike. Lately the issues of parenting within the social media/mobile device environment has come to the forefront of the public’s attention.” … Continue Reading
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