Phoney Kidnap Scam

Phoney Kidnap Scam

Here is how it works - don't be a victim:

1. You get a strange call, and a recording of a familiar voice saying they are kidnapped
2. They say they don't know where they are and they are cut off
3. A voice comes on the line and gives you a western union name and address
4.  They tell you to not call authorities, or they will harm the loved one
5.   You hear screams in the background - and the sounds of somebody that is familiar to you begging for help.  The voice tells you that you have one hour to wire the money - before they kill the victim.
6.  You send money - hoping to save the loved one. They were actually never kidnapped. You have no relative by that name.

Have your own personal horror story? Post it in the comments and it will give others insight into how these operators trick people. It will help, a lot. 

Free Credit Monitoring With AAA

When you are a AAA member, you are entitled to free credit monitoring, which is the most effective defense against identity theft.

It is a service provided by Experian Credit, and does not include monitoring of the other two major agencies. But it is valuable, since most big transactions appear on all three reporting agencies.

Learn more about it here. 


The only way to prevent being victimized is to monitor your credit, since it is so easy for people to get your social security number.  There are no government agencies or non-profit firms that help you with identity theft.  A few private companies, such as LifeLock, advertise special protection over and above monitoring.  But monitoring is a good place to start, and can prevent I.D. thieves from doing the most serious damage. Don't wait until you are victimized, start monitoring your credit activity now. 

IRS Collection Phone Scam

The latest major trend in telemarketing fraud is a foreign-based IRS collection scam; and it is causing many to lose thousands.

Seniors are told that they owe money to the IRS; in some cases, the area code will be 202, which is the area code for Washington D.C.. This, along with a lot of authentic sounding jargon, makes the calls very convincing. Of course, many Americans are suspicious of the calls because the callers often have very heavy foreign accents.

WSMV Channel 4