Scam Squad

With the holidays upon up, porch pirates are once again stealing our packages. Be sure to listen to these tips to keep your precious packages safe from thieves!

No one is immune from being targeted by scammers; not even a judge! In this episode of Scam Squad, Retired Superior Court Judge, George Eskin, shares his story of how scammers targeted him--and how they hacked into private email correspondence, giving them private details/information that made them seem very believable.

Luckily, the Judge didn't fall for the scam. Learn what tipped him off so that you don't fall for it either.

When a woman believes she is corresponding with her friend (who has really hacked her friend's account), she is led down a primrose path with promises of a $90,000 grant--but first, she needs to pay a few fees, to the tune of $12,000. Beware of this vicious scam!

Montecito Bank & Trust warns that scammers may call to question an Amazon transaction. They may pretend to be confirming a transaction which they feel may be fraudulent but they're really trying to get your person/financial information. Another scam involves logging into your Amazon account or convincing you to allow them to access it remotely. Don't fall for it!

Special guest, Carol Baizer, from the Independent Living Resource Center of the Tri-Counties, shares a threatening voice mail from a fraudulant bill collector. While it sounds official, Baizer points out that the caller omitted vital information such as what the bill was for and what agency they were with. The caller did, however, ask for a call-back where they most certainly would have tried to get the intended victim to pay them. The Independent Living Resource Center assists individuals with disabilitie s and among other things, helps them to navigate social security, medicare and medicaid. They are a national organization. The Independent Living Resource Center of the Tri-Counties serves San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura. https://ilrc-trico.org/

CABLE TV REPAIR SCAM by Hub for Podcasting

COURT SUMMONS SCAM by Hub for Podcasting

Senior Fraud Specialist Shawn Dyer, from Montecito Bank & Trust, reminds us to only use P to P apps to pay friends or family. She warns us that fraudsters are requesting payments via P to P apps such as Venmor or Zelle and then don't provide the goods. Also, caller ID can be spoofed so don't be fooled! If you receive a call that says it's from your bank, call them back instead of trusting that it's really from them! Subscribe to Scam Squad today so you don't miss an important Scam Alert!

Beware of emails which appear to come from friends, but aren't what you'd expect to receive from them. In this special edition of Scam Scam, a retired defense attorney shares the red flags he recognized when a board member from an organization he's a member of asked for gift cards for what seemed to be a 'good cause.' Then, the County of Santa Barbara's restitution specialist, Dayton Aldrich, shares great tips which include:

changing your password, having a computer specialist check for malware or ransomware, using a VPN server, and changing your social media settings to make them as private as possible. He also recommends using passphrases rather than passwords, and to have a different password for every single site. If this seems overwhelming, there are password apps that can do it for you, such as Lastpass. Dayton also reccommended the useful site, haveIbeenpwned.com, where you can put in your email address or password and be shown where your accounts may have exposed and/or breached.

ONLINE ROMANCE & INVESTMENT SCAMS by Hub for Podcasting