Fraud Alerts

Resources & Advocacy

Missoula Police Dept. warns of recent scams

The Missoula Police Dept. reports a recent increase in telephone, Internet and mail scams. Some are new variations on old themes, such as the following, originating from Canada: 

A caller represents him or herself as a law enforcement officer or a representative from the Magistrates Court demanding bail/bond money to release a relative (usually a grandson or granddaughter) from jail. The caller uses the correct names and addresses because he or she has researched the information first through the Internet, using such websites as Facebook. The caller requests the money (usually over $1,000) be sent by Money Gram or Western Union.

By mail, residents have received phony checks with letters asking the victim to cash the checks and send back a certain percentage of the money for processing. The checks later prove to be no good. Another mail scam involves the senders posing as relatives saying they are in jail and need money, as in the phone scam above. In another mail scam, a letter may inform the victim that he or she has won a lottery but must send money to receive the payoff.  Remember: Never pay anything to receive “winnings” or participate in international lotteries.

The most common sources for Internet scams in Missoula seem to originate from Nigeria, Canada and Jamaica. Often, the offer is similar to the mail offers above. Another variation is to tell the victim that a relative overseas has died and willed money to the victim, who can claim the money by sending a fee.

Missoula Police Department Crime Prevention Officer Rob Scheben reminds residents to be wary, and never give out a credit card number or other personal information or agree to send money to a stranger who calls. Report any suspicious calls, letters or email messages to the police, who work with the Office of Consumer Protection when scams are reported. In Missoula, call 552-6335.  

Phony IRS emails circulating 

A September 2009 mass e-mailing is spamming Internet users with phony notices that warn recipients they might be targets of IRS fraud investigations due to having unreported or underreported income. The message invites the reader to click on a link to "review" their "tax statements" on the IRS web site. (The provided link leads to an .EXE file that  likely is a carrier of some form of malware.)

The IRS never sends out unsolicited e-mails to taxpayers. When the IRS needs to contact a taxpayer, it sends notice via U.S. Mail. Every such notice includes a telephone number that the recipient can call for confirmation. Should you need to visit the IRS web site for any reason, go there directly (by entering the www.irs.gov URL into your web browser) rather than following links in e-mail messages.

The IRS reminds us on their website:
The IRS does not initiate taxpayer communications through e-mail. The IRS does not request detailed personal information through e-mail.
The IRS does not send e-mail requesting your PIN numbers, passwords or similar access information for credit cards, banks or other financial accounts.
Report suspicious e-mails and bogus IRS Web sites to phishing@irs.gov.

Do not reply if you receive an e-mail from someone claiming to be the IRS or directing you to an IRS site.
Do not open any attachments. Attachments may contain malicious code that will infect your computer.
Do not click on any links. If you clicked on links in a suspicious e-mail or phishing Web site and entered confidential information, visit the IRS Identity Theft page.  

Be alert for callers requesting personal bank information

The Social Security Administration (SSA) has been contacted by a number of SSA beneficiaries who report the following:

Callers impersonating SSA officials offer beneficiaries an increase in current benefits of between $300 and $500, along with other awards such as gasoline vouchers. The caller identifies the reasons for the increase as either: a reward for excellent credit; money owed the beneficiary by the government; a refund of back taxes; or increased benefits resulting from new legislation.

The caller informs the persons called of the monetary award, and also provides their true name, address, SSN, and bank routing number. The caller then asks for the bank account number into which the money will purportedly be deposited.

More than 50 incidents of this nature, spanning the entire country, have thus far been reported to the OIG. Reports have consistently related that the caller speaks with a highly distinctive foreign accent.

If you receive any calls of a similar nature, please neither release any personal information, nor verify any personal information that the caller may provide. Contact your local SSA field office immediately.

Be alert for health care plan marketing violations 

Please be aware there have been cases in the Billings area of alleged marketing violations.  Based on Caller ID’s, Pennsylvania Life Ins Co (214-357-9353) is allegedly cold-calling seniors and scheduling appointments, giving them all passwords to use so they can identify the agent that comes to see them.  An agent then shows up for the appointment and has been selling Today’s Options.  All of these calls were unsolicited.

The marketing guidelines are clear and are for everyone’s protection. Medicare Advantage Plans are health plan options approved by Medicare and run by private companies. Medicare Advantage Plans aren’t the same as the Original Medicare Plan or Medigap (Medicare Supplement Insurance) policies. All persons representing Medicare Advantage Plans must follow certain rules when giving you information about their plan. These rules also apply to independent agents and brokers working with Medicare Advantage Plans.

Among other rules, Medicare Advantage Plans CAN’T come to your home uninvited to sell or endorse any Medicare-related product or offer you cash to join their plan.

For a complete set of these rules, please see your local SHIP office at 1-800-551-3191.  These rules are there for the beneficiaries protection and any break of these rules needs to be reported.  

Jury duty scam reported

Most of us take those summons for jury duty seriously, but enough people skip out on their civic duty, that a new and ominous kind of scam has surfaced.

The caller claims to be a jury coordinator. If you protest that you never received a summons for jury duty, the scammer asks you for your Social Security number and date of birth so he or she can verify the information and cancel the arrest warrant. Give out any of this information and bingo, your identity just got stolen.

The scam has been reported so far in 11 states, including Oklahoma, Illinois and Colorado. This scam is particularly insidious because they use intimidation over the phone to try to bully people into giving information by pretending they're with the court system. The FBI and the federal court system have issued nationwide alerts on their web sites, warning consumers about the fraud.

Websites offer up-to-date fraud information

Several websites offer up-to-date information about past and present frauds and scams, and how to avoid being defrauded. Links are available by clicking on the "Links" bar on the Missoula Aging Services home page. Then scroll down the list to the heading "Senior Fraud Alerts & Information."

Fraud and scam information - they want to take your money:

You probably have heard it many times: "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is." How do you tell the difference between an offer that's genuine and a trap?

If you feel you may have been the victim of any of the following scams, or you or a senior you know feel that something is fishy or just plain scary, please call 728-7682 and ask to speak to the Senior Help Line or call your local police.

Unscrupulous people (con artists) try to take advantage of seniors in the following ways:

And these are just the ones that law enforcement knows about!

It may be embarrassing to admit that you've been swindled, but reporting the scam will help prevent it from happening to others.