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BBB Names Top Ten Scams of 2011

The Better Business Bureau investigates thousands of scams every year. For 2011 we divided scams into nine major categories and picked the top scam in each, plus we added our #1 most irritating scam of 2011. Read on to find out why...

Top Job Scam
Often times prospective emails, websites and online applications can look very professional; however be wary of immediate job offers. Some online scams will state that in order to start the job, you must fill out a "credit report" or provide bank information for direct deposit of their "paychecks." The online forms are nothing more than a way to capture sensitive personal data that can easily be used for identity theft. Of course, there is no job, either.

Top Sweepstakes and Lottery Scam
Sweepstakes and lottery scams come in various incarnations, but the tell-tale hook is always the same. You've won money but in order to claim it you have to send money via wire transfer. This year's top sweepstakes scam was undoubtedly the email claiming to be from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg announcing that the recipient was the winner of $1 million dollars. The bottom line: NEVER WIRE MONEY TO SOMEONE YOU DON'T KNOW PERSONALLY!

Top Social Media/Online Dating Scam
Are you really friends with all of your "Friends" on Facebook? Do you have a lot of personal information on an online dating site? Beware that some links on social media sites often look as if they have been shared by a friend. When you click on the link, you are prompted to "upgrade your flash player," but in reality you are downloading a worm that can log into your social media account, send similar messages to your friend and search your personal data.

Top Home Improvement Scam
Always near the top of the list are home improvement contractors who leave your home worse than they found it. Use vigilance with the contractor who knocks on your door and solicits you. Itinerant contractors move around, keeping a step ahead of both the law and angry customers. A large percentage of BBB's Accredited Businesses are home contractors who want to make sure you know they and trustworthy and dependable. Find one at www.iowa.bbb.org.

Top Check Cashing Scam
Two legitimate companies, craigslist and Western Union, are frequently used in check cashing scams. Here's how it works: Someone contacts you via a craigslist posting, maybe for a legitimate reason like buying your old couch or perhaps through a scam like hiring you as a secret shopper. Either way, they send you a check for more than the amount, ask you to deposit it into your bank account and send them the difference via Western Union. The wired money is gone instantly. When the original check bounces, you are out whatever money you wired…and you're still stuck with that old couch.

Top Phishing Scam
The top phishing scam this year disguised itself as official communication from NACHA – the National Automated Clearing House Association — which facilitates the secure transfer of billions of electronic transactions every year. The email claims one of your transactions did not go through and it hopes you react quickly by clicking on a link. It may take you to a fake banking site to "verify" you account information, or it may download malware to infiltrate your computer.

Top Identity Theft Scam
There are a million and one ways to steal someone's identity. This one has become so prevalent that many hotels are posting warnings in their lobby. Here's how it works: You get a call in your hotel room in the middle of the night. It's someone claiming to be from the front desk saying their computer has crashed and they need to get your credit card number again. Scammers are counting on you being too sleepy to catch on that the call isn't from the hotel, but from someone looking to steal your credit card number.

Top Financial Scam
In challenging economic times, many people are looking for help getting out of debt or hanging on to their home. When the federal government announced or expanded several mortgage relief programs, all kinds of sound-alike websites have popped up trying to fool consumers into believing they can help. Most ask for an upfront fee and almost all leave you in more debt than when you started.

Top Sales Scam
Penny auctions have become very popular because it seems like you can get merchandise for well below retail price. You pay a nominal fee for each bid but if you aren't the winner, you lose all of your bid money. Winners often are not even the top bidder, just the last bidder when time runs out. Although not all penny auction sites are scams, some are being investigated as online gambling. The BBB recommends you treat them the same way you would legal gambling in a casino — know exactly how the bidding works and set a limit for yourself.

#1 Most Irritating Scam
In this phishing scam people across the country received emails that looked like an official notice from BBB. The subject line read "Complaint Against Your Business," and instructed the recipient to either click on a link or open an attachment for further details. Either had the potential to launch a malicious virus on to their computer. The BBB has been working with security consultants and federal law enforcement to track down the source of these emails, and has already shut down dozens of hijacked websites. Anyone who has opened an attachment or clicked on a link should run a complete system scan using reputable anti-virus software. If your computer is networked with others, all machines in the network should be scanned, as well.

Our new Scam Source (www.bbb.org/scam) is a comprehensive resource on scam investigations from BBBs around the country, with tips on how to avoid them. You can sign up to receive our Scam Alerts by email and you can also be a scam detective by reporting scams you've discovered.