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Ten Things You Can Do to Avoid Fraud OKAY, LET’S TALK ABOUT SCAMMERS AND FRAUD NOW THAT THE SUMMER MONTHS ARE UPON US. No, not just the swindler playing violin in the grocery store parking lot. I mean, that was kind of a cool soundtrack to my stroll into Harris Teeter, but, in all seriousness, they are out there, in full force and in all forms. Our community has been hit hard over the last 24 months and it continues. So many Facebook and Instagram friend requests, from what appear to be friends but are not. So many folks getting credit cards, debit cards, check orders and statements for accounts they did NOT open themselves. How can you protect yourself? On a high level, use your judgement. Well, what if it’s a topic I know nothing about? What if I am not sure? What if it actually seems legit? Here are a few tips you can follow to avoid being scammed, hacked or defrauded. Put these to memory and share them with your friends and family. Let’s all come together and look out for one another! 40 | SAND& PINE MAGAZINE June/July 2022
Spot imposters. Scammers and hackers are constantly pretending to be someone we trust—friends, family, the government, etc. Scammers will always make it sound urgent. They use texts, phone calls, emails, direct messages on social media and regular mail. Best rule of thumb: NEVER give out personal information or send money when the request is unexpected. Investigate. Type any company into a search engine along with the words scam, complaint or review. This will oftentimes show you if others are receiving similar contact or correspondence that you are questioning. You can even search for phone numbers by using this method. Don’t believe your caller ID. Technology makes it really easy for a scammer to fake caller ID information. The data you see is not always real. Hang up on those robocalls. If you pick up the phone and hear a recorded sales pitch, hang up and report it to the Federal Trade Commission. We will
