Scam Squad

This week on Scam Squad, Deputy District Attorney Vicki Johnson shares a warning that she received from the FBI, regarding potential charity fraud associated with the COVID-19 Pandemic. If you feel called to donate to charity, listen to this episode to get tips about what to look for when donating. If you want to learn more about a particular charity, you can learn more by searching about that charity on Charitynavigator.org. Vicki also shares statistics about the most common scams and the most vulnerable demographics. To report a scam or if you believe you have been scammed, call Vicki Johnson at 805.568.2442

Our guest, Sue, called in on our fraud hotline to report that her purse was stolen at the grocery store! Believe it or not, there are groups of people who go into grocery stores for the sole reason of stealing people's purses! Shoppers beware of strangers starting suspicious, 'random' conversations and do not leave your purse or valuables unattended! To report a scam or if you believe you have been scammed, call Vicki Johnson at 805.568.2442

This episode of Scam Squad welcomes Senior Fraud Specialist from Montecito Bank and Trust, Shawn Dyer. In this episode Shawn discusses Utility Scams, Tech Support Scams, and she warns about automatic “robo-calls”. Tech Support scams occur when you are on your computer and you see an internet pop-up claiming that you need to fix your computer. Or the pop-up says you have a virus etc. It is true that pop-ups like this most definitely have scammers on the other side who want your money! They may even try to convince you to send them funds in the form of gift cards for the tentative tech support they supposedly offer. To report a scam or if you believe you have been scammed, call Vicki Johnson at 805.568.2442

This episode of Scam Squad features Dr. Judy Christman Yates a criminologist, specializing in financial exploitation. Judy shares the latest news on financial crimes and discusses how scammers use fear tactics to take advantage of unsuspecting people. To report a scam or if you believe you have been scammed, call Vicki Johnson at 805.568.2442

This week’s special guest, Susan, contacted Vicki via the fraud hotline. Susan found out that she was lured into a scam by receiving a phone call allegedly from Amazon. The scammers offered to send Susan money as a rebate, as long as Susan provided sensitive information like bank account information.

To report a scam or if you believe you have been scammed, call Vicki Johnson at 805.568.2442

Scam Squad welcomes this week’s special guest, who contacted Vicki Johnson via the fraud hotline.

One day, our guest received a phone call from El Paso, Texas, allegedly from the Social Security Administration and the DEA, notifying her that she is being monitored because her social security number is involved in various crimes. Even scammers will wrongfully impersonate authority figures!

To report a scam or if you believe you have been scammed, call Vicki Johnson at 805.568.2442

Scam Squad would like to welcome this week’s special guest Doris Roof. Doris Roof is the Senior Fraud Specialist for Montecito Bank and Trust. She is on the show today to tell us about some scams that are all too commonplace.

One common scam is a sweepstakes scam; where scammers claim that you are the winner of a large sum of money – but you won’t go claiming that prize unless you send them money first! To report a scam or if you believe you have been scammed, call Vicki Johnson at 805.568.2442

This week’s episode of Scam squad features special guest, Joni Maiden. Joni is now the director of Santa Barbara County’s Department of Child Support Services and Co-chair of SB County’s Census 2020 Complete Count Committee. Joni shares information about the census, which is conducted every 10 years. Anyone can go online to complete the census at www.my2020census.gov or English Speakers can call 844.344.2020, while Spanish speakers can call 844.468.2020. The U.S. Census is offered in 16 languages! The deadline for this year’s census is September 30th, 2020. To report a scam or if you believe you have been scammed, call Vicki Johnson at 805.568.2442

Special guest Marie called the fraud hotline because her 83 year old mother had gotten involved in a scam and lost a considerable amount of money. Marie’s mother was called by a man who claimed to be from Apple Computers. The fake Apple representative insisted that her system was hacked and the only solution was to purchase and send gift cards to the perpetrators. To report a scam or if you believe you have been scammed, call Vicki Johnson at 805.568.2442

According to new data from the federal trade commission, the most common scam during the pandemic is Identity Theft. Particularly, fraudsters are filing fraudulent unemployment claims with a false identity. It is rumored that certain identity thieves have multiple government checks, addressed to different names, coming to one address. If you believe that you have been victim of identity theft, and someone has made a claim for government assistance using your identity, call the Employment Development Department, 1-800-229-6297. To report a scam or if you believe you have been scammed, call Vicki Johnson at 805.568.2442