This is an excerpt from the Scams: Phone, Mail, Internet, Pyramid from the www.maine.gov site:
There is an old saying, “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.” When you are looking to protect yourself from being ripped off, or becoming a victim of identity theft, heeding these words is the best protection you have.
But what if the offer is not too good to be true? What if it is a reasonable transaction, conducted in the course of day to day business? You may be renting an apartment, selling an item on eBay or in Uncle Henry’s and the person perpetrating the fraud seems to check out OK. This is the nature of a popular type of con.
Fake check scams often originate through email. A stranger wants to purchase a good or a service, and when they send their check they will ask you to wire some money back to them.
The stories they use vary from scam to scam. If you are renting an apartment, they may ask you to wire money to cover the cost of getting their furniture out of storage or make up a family tragedy that has changed their circumstances. If they are buying an item from eBay, they could “accidently” send you a check for too much money, then ask you to wire back the difference.
Fraudsters do not respond solely to internet or newspaper ads. We recently saw nearly a dozen Maine farmers contacted about the purchase of hay, sent a check from out of state, and then asked to wire the overpayment back to the purported buyer. Whatever the set-up, the bottom line is if someone you don't know pays you with check but wants you to wire money back, it's a scam.
The Maine Office of the Attorney General has witnessed people from around the world using the internet, the mail box and the telephone to rip off Maine consumers. At first they were asking you to donate to a charity that did not exist, then they were offering can’t miss business deals. When that stopped working, they started answering classified ads for apartments and cars. They would send you a check and then come up with an excuse to have some money wired to them. Here in Maine, and across the United States, people were scammed out of millions of dollars.
A survey conducted in seven states estimates that over 29 percent of Western Union transfers in excess of $300 from the U.S. to Canada were fraud induced, representing 58 percent of the total dollars transferred. In response to these finding, Maine and 46 other states negotiated an agreement with Western Union that has helped to educate consumers who transfer money by wire.
I am proud to be here today to help raise awareness of check fraud. It is often difficult to catch the perpetrators who operate overseas, who operate in developing nations where governments not only turn a blind eye, but the culture encourages the behavior.
This Consumer Awareness Campaign is designed to educate people so Americans can steer clear of fraudulent transactions. While there is no way to ensure that you will never fall victim to one of these schemes, there are things you can do to protect yourself:
Be skeptical. There is no legitimate reason for you to wire money back to someone who has paid with a check.
Just because it looks like the money is available, does not mean the check has cleared. Check with your bank to make sure the check has cleared.
If a stranger would like to pay you for something, demand a cashier’s check from a local bank or a bank with a branch near you.
Do not deposit checks unless they are for the exact amount of the payment. If a check is for more than it should be, return it and ask for a check for the exact amount.
Educate loved ones about the nature of scams
Resist any pressure to “act now.” If the buyer’s offer is good now, it should be good after the check clears.
If you think you are a victim of a scam you should:
Contact the FTC 1-877-FTC-HELP
Contact your local post office
Contact the Maine Attorney General’s Office: 800-436-2131
Many people often think this type of thing will never happen to them. That people who fall victim to scams are looking to get rich quick or so gullible there is no helping them. These stereo types are not at all accurate.
About a month ago I was forwarded an email chain from a constituent who had been looking to rent some rooms as a way to make a little extra money. He advertised the rooms on Craig’s List, and received a response from a very interested person. Over the next few weeks the constituent exchanged 19 emails with the fraudster. Answering questions about how the room was furnished, move in dates, trash collection, transportation, and other questions one would ask before renting an apartment.
In the final emails the fraudster asks the landlord to wire part of the security deposit to a moving company. Luckily the constituent became wary, ceased contact and reported the incident to the authorities.
What struck me about this particular scam was the high number of contacts, the legitimate nature of the questions the fraudster was asking, and the details of his story. There was no offer of millions, just someone answering an ad. The consumer was not trying to get rich, he was just trying to supplement his cash flow.
I would like to end by offering a piece of advice. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. While this is sound advice, I also urge you to be even more vigilant. Thieves are no longer just playing on financial fantasies; they are concealing their scams in legitimate commerce and complex back stories.
Also from 2007: Hay scam information from the Maine Attorney General