It looks as if identity thieves are going back to the old fashioned way of trying to get their hands on your personal information. Over the past few years or so, we’ve seen a dramatic increase in the use of the Internet and telephone in attempts to gather the personal information of potential victims. Identity thieves send out mass emails “phishing” for people’s credit card and banking information. These same type of thieves have also been known to gain access to private information by phone, lulling potential victims into a sense of security by making them think they’re talking to a representative from a legitimate company.
Recently, I read about someone who had received a fraudulent solicitation by mail in the form of a package that appeared to be from his existing credit card issuer. The packet of information was an apparent “amendment” to his existing card agreement. He was instructed to complete a form and then send it back if he wished to reject the new terms.
There were several clues about this packet of information that tipped off this individual. First, the letter wasn’t on bank stationary and the ink was suspiciously faded. Although the letter contained the last four digits of the person’s credit card number, these two factors made the letter seem highly suspect. Another red flag was the fact that the “rejection” form asked for a great deal of personal information that included the full credit card number.
Being highly suspicious, this individual called his bank to verify the letter. He didn’t call the number that was listed on the form and instead called the card issuer at a number that he knew was valid. After making the call, he verified that the letter was indeed a fake and the bank asked him to send it to them directly so they could follow up with an investigation.
If you’re amazed by the extremes these thieves will go to in committing this type of fraud, you really shouldn’t be. Although this scam was certainly more involved and more expensive than simply sending out a mass phishing email, people have undoubtedly been taken advantage of by similar schemes.
You can file a mail fraud complaint directly with the US Postal Inspection Service here.
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