New York’s Top 10 Frauds

January 13, 2012

In New York, there is Consumer Protection Week, where consumers are given tips to beat scams. Two top frauds in New York are Internet and credit scams, according to a 2010 survey. Educating consumers with information on fraud red flags may be the best way for them to defend against fraud schemes. In 2010, the [...]

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Is Lying on Facebook Considered Fraud?

January 13, 2012

Consumer fraud can occur on the Internet, and the government is using wire fraud and computer access laws to prosecute people for violation of website and company computer terms of use. In oral argument before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on the case of U.S. v. Nosal, 642 F.3d 781 (9th Cir. 2011), members [...]

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New York State Attorney General’s Investigation into Foreclosure Scams

January 12, 2012

Since early 2009, the New York State Attorney General has been investigating “foreclosure rescue” industry. The Attorney General’s investigation stems from allegations that some companies unlawfully manipulate, misrepresent, and defraud consumers through illegal tactics, leading to delinquent mortgage payments and increased foreclosure for homeowners. The Attorney General has focused efforts on loan modification companies. Companies [...]

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Top Consumer Complaints

January 12, 2012

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) should be coming out with its list of top consumer complaints for 2011 soon. In 2010, the #1 top consumer complaint was identity theft for the 11th year in a row. In 2010, of 1,339,265 complaints received in 2010, 250,854 (19%) were related to identity theft. Debt collection complaints came [...]

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What to do After Suffering Identity Theft?

January 11, 2012

Identify theft has been ranked by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) as the #1 consumer complaint. After being a victim of identity theft, take these steps to resolve accounts: 1. If the thief opens new unauthorized accounts, file a dispute with the company owed funds, or file a report with law enforcement, and provide a [...]

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What Does a Credit Fraud Alert Not Do?

January 10, 2012

When struck with identity theft, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) advises identity theft victims to place a fraud alert on their credit reports. What do fraud alerts do? A credit fraud alert assists to keep an identity thief from opening new accounts in a person’s name. However, a fraud alert is not a solution to [...]

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Online Fraud

January 8, 2012

Baratunde Thurston gave an inspirational talk in San Francisco on 1/12/2012 on collaboration. He was not only funny, but showed without a business degree or long term work history with an established big name company, he had business sense and technology savvy. Thurston, who lives in Brooklyn, NY, talked about his mix of activities – [...]

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A Guide to Debt Collection for Consumers

January 8, 2012

If a person is behind in paying bills, or a creditor’s records erroneously make it appear that a person is, a debt collector may contact the person by phone or mail to pay off the bill. When responding to collection communications, be careful of what information is said. For example, after a car accident, if [...]

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Marketing Scams

January 7, 2012

Many companies are becoming savvy about marketing on the Internet.  Attorneys, tutors, consultants get many of their clients from people who do searches on the Internet for products and services.  One industry that has become very competitive is the bar exam tutoring business. It appears that many unemployed or underemployed attorneys or law school graduates [...]

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Buying Club Consumer Fraud

January 6, 2012

A buying club is a group where consumers buy goods or services automatically at regular intervals such as monthly. The types of merchandise may be wines, cookies, beauty products, or cookware. If a consumer accepts a free offer from a buying club, the consumer end up being billed for a product or service the consumer [...]

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