To avoid falling for an email scam, make sure you can identify the warning signs. Read more

To avoid falling for a magazine subscription scam, make sure you know the warning signs to look for. Read more

Watch this video to learn how to avoid falling for a phony check scheme. Read more

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, wants consumers to beware of telephone sales pitches for magazine subscriptions. While some offers may be legitimate, many are not. Agreeing to buy could result in years of monthly bills for magazines you don’t want, or you could end up paying for a magazine you never even receive.

Solicitors may try to lower your guard by saying they’re just calling to conduct a survey. To protect yourself, don’t ever give your credit card or other personal information to any caller. Don’t agree to anything you don’t receive in writing first. Before you accept an offer to renew a subscription, check the expiration date to determine if it’s really coming up. Read more

The more at ease you are on the Internet, the easier it is to let your guard down, as I discovered the other day. I received an e-mail with the subject marked “Billing Notice.” Without thinking, I opened it immediately. The e-mail from AOL and said that they were experiencing a problem with charging the monthly fee and suspected my card was about to expire. In fact, the card does expire this month.

They asked me to click on a link update my information. I was about to do that when my daughter noted that AOL notices usually look different. AOL Customer Service confirmed this was a scam. The scammers only use an e-mail address for about 10 minutes to collect card numbers quickly before shutting it down and starting over again. Read more

Watch this video to learn about the latest auto body repair scam targeted at women and what you can do to avoid it. Read more

Picture a previously convicted unlicensed contractor who pled guilty to six felony charges, including elder abuse, grand theft and diversion of construction funds. Does this sound like someone you’d want to hire to work on your home? Of course not…but the man described above currently has an active arrest warrant for failure to appear in court, which means he’s still at large and could potentially prey on vulnerable, unsuspecting homeowners. Read more