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What is Consumer Fraud Reporting?
Consumer Fraud Reporting is an free online service to warn consumers about
specific types of financial and other scams via the internet and provide a means
to report scams and fraud.
In addition to thousands of actual examples of scam letters, emails, faxes
and transcripts of phone conversations to help you identify a scam, we have many
pages of concise lists of contact information, links, phone numbers and guidance
to help you report the scam to the proper authorities, and to try to recover
your loss.
To keep
up to date on the types of scams in global circulation we stay in regular
contact with overseas consumer agencies.
Consumer Fraud Reporting is fully independent and objective; it is not a government agency or affiliated with any
government; we act as an information exchange to help raise public
awareness about scams and to help to bring them to the attention of the proper
enforcement authorities. Unfortunately, we do not have enforcement powers over
local or overseas scams; but we aim to help you to find the proper enforcement
agency! We also try to present the facts in a simple, clear, and hopefully,
interesting manner!
We are funded by contributions and advertisers. We do not have anything
to do with the advertisers (it is run by a third party). If you see an ad that
is inappropriate, please contact us and we will ask that it be removed.
Resources
- What to do if you think you
have already been the victim of a fraud or identity theft
- State and Local Consumer Protection Agencies,
Master List
for the United States - If you are looking for the best local consumer
protection agency to use to report a scam, seek advice, to obtain assistance
in resolving a dispute, this list has the contact information!
- Local FBI Office Listings
to find the closest FBI office to report a crime or scam.
- Recommendations about which
products work best for anti-spyware, anti-adware, ant-virus, etc. and
links to discounted prices.
- Guidance about how to protect yourself
- Links, phone numbers and sign up information for the
National Do-Not-Call List and
the credit card offers opt-out list
- Resources lists and guides -
see this page for many more resources, such as lists of domain extensions for other countries, telephone country codes,
area codes, etc.
Did you receive an email from CFR?
We also NEVER send out emails, except to respond to consumers who write us -
so if you receive an email from us, without writing to us first, then it is a
scam - do not open it - just delete it. This is a common scam using
"spoofing", making the email address appear to come from a reputable website,
while loading the message with spam, scams or worse. So far, there is no
technical way to stop it.
What Sort of Scams Do We Report On?
See the alphabetized list at left, and click on the topic that interests you.
Or click on the links below in the list of most popular topics.
Latest scams, cons or just plain rip-offs
- Tax Scams - Now that it is the "tax season" in the U.S. tax scams are
everywhere. See this page for of the current tax scams.
- Bruce A.
Berman says he can make you rich! In fact, he says you need his
book to get rich! And he's so rich, he'll give you his free book and
cd, just for the cost of shipping. You've seen the commercials on tv
and heard them on radio. It sounds too good to be true, doesn't it?
Read our review here.
- Matthew Lesko -
Screaming nutjob in a green question-mark suit peddling rubbish. If that
isn't clear enough, read our full review here.
Court, Legal and Criminal Activity:
Lotteries, Promotions and Prizes
- Lottery
and prize scams - emails tell you that you have won a
prize in a contest you don't remember entering, but you have to pay fees or
give them your bank account details. Also see out
list of legitimate lotteries
and our list of scam lotteries.
- UK / United Kingdom Lottery
scams
- Canadian Lottery
Scams
- Irish lottery scams
- Sweepstakes and Prize Scams
- similar to lotteries, except, by law, you are supposed to not need to buy
anything in order to win
- Promotion Scams and
Rip-offs: Did you receive a phone call, email or notice in the mail
that you are an "instant winner" or that you are guaranteed to have won one
of several prizes? Maybe you completed a card at a store or put your name
and address in a box to win a vacation, or perhaps you dropped your business
card into a fishbowl. Often, this is a legal way for marketing companies to
harvest your name, address, email and phone number to suck you into to a
legal rip-off.
- Scams against the
hearing-impaired. Scammers are equal-opportunity criminals; if you
have a handicap, they'll do their best to con you into thinking there is a
special grant or lottery just for that!
Astrology, Psychic, Faith and Religion Scams
- Astrology and psychic schemes sent from an overseas based
psychic, clairvoyant or astrologer offering fortune telling books, reports
or a talisman for a fee.
Banking Scams
Buying, Selling, Shopping and Auctions Online and Off
- Auction Frauds - Do
you use Ebay or PayPal, or other auction websites? Then read these
tips to know what to look for! Also see our page on
selling scams on the internet
- Classified Ad Scams
- Online classified ad websites like Craig's List (craigslist.org and
craigslist.org.uk) and newspapers have enabled millions of individuals to connect buy and
sell a great variety of personal merchandise, but the scammers are operating
there, just as everywhere else.
See this page for illustrated
examples that explain how the scam works.
- Fake checks from
fake buyers - If you have something to sell, whether you are one person
selling a used item or a business, there's a scammer waiting for you, as
long as you are willing to take a check for more than the price of the item.
- Fake checks - from fake
lotteries, EBay buyers and others - Just because someone sends you
or gives you a real-looking check, don't assume it is legitimate. And
attempting to cash it can land you in jail! Read more here. And what do you
think the scammer say when you call their phone number.
Click here to read a transcript of
an actual call to a scammer, as we pose as one of the "winners" he's
notified by email. And see this
page for a list of banks that have reported stolen checks, to see if the
check you received is from one of them!
- Fake online stores - Is
that website offering fantastic prices legitimate? How can you tell?
Check here for tips and lists of known scam shopping websites.
- Pet scams - Photos of cute
puppies that are stranded, free to a good home> It's a scam!
- Shopping scams - "Win a
Free Laptop", "refer friends and take 1 offer" and get a free computer.
These shopping "deals" are no bargain! See this page!
Checks / Cheques - Fake and Counterfeit
Computer viruses, Worms and Other Malware
Comic Relief - The Funny Side of Scams
Con Men / Con Games
- Confidence scams - Not all scams and scammers appear in email, a letter or a phone
call. Some approach you where and when you least expect them: in church,
at school, in a grocery store or gym. Fond what to watch out for here.
Counterfeit Products
Debt collection scams
Education Scams
- Quick degree scams
- "Get your degree in 30 days!" "No studying required", "Turn your
experience into a degree". Sure, they're accredited and the degree is legal
and meaningful. And we have some swampland to sell you, too.
Click here for details.
Email Scams and Spam
- Email Spams - Endless unsolicited help in
getting a cheap mortgage, enlargening your
genitals,
buying viagra or cheap drugs, software or losing weight. Many of these also
contain worms and viruses! And don't think for a moment that the "sent from"
or "reply to" addresses are real.. or really who sent it.
See this page about falsified email
addreses: spoofing!
- How to Stop Spam almost forever! You don't have to face an inbox full of
porn, spam, scams and junk every day.
Here's how
to stop it.
- Nigerian Scams: Money
Transfer / Advance Fee Fraud / Bank account scams / Fake Business deals (419 scams), such as letters, emails or
faxes notifying the recipient that the sender requires help in transferring
a large sum of money through your bank account (for reward) usually from
Nigerian and Dutch sources. There are many variations on this scheme,
including the fake business
deal: "I need a business partner in the U.S.", types of money
laundering, and others. Also see
fake cashier's checks. Also see
Jobs Scams. Also see these pages:
Extortion Scams
- Death Threat Extortion Scams: Not satisfied
with trying to con money from victims, some scammers are trying death
threats and extortion scams. See this page for more information and
sample emails.
Scams written in languages other than English
Fake Organization Scams
False or deceptive advertising and defective products
- See current cases of false
advertising, defective product investigations, exaggerated product
claims, product scams and the court or FTC settlements.
- Click here to search the FTC
database to see if a particular company or product has been investigated
for false advertising, defective products or other trade issues? Just search
the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) database.
Fax Scams
- Are junk faxes and fax scams
with names like "vacation memos" and "stock tips" piled up on your company
fax machine? Does you fax machine spew out junk advertising? Read about
these scams here.
Grants - Fake
"Green Card Lottery"
Hoaxes, Myths and Email Chain Letters
- Hoaxes and nuisance scams -
Your water bottle won't give you cancer and Bill Gates doesn't want to send
anyone to Disney World, least of all, just because you send an email to 20
friends...
- Fake business deals:
"I need a business partner in the U.S."... and more.
House, Home and Apartment Scams
- Home repair scams
- Just because they advertise in the yellow pages, drive a business van, or
look like a technician, doesn't mean they aren't out to scam you!
Identity Theft and Credit Reports
- Check your credit
report, for free! Yes, you really can. The US Government
mandated it. But watch out for the scams. Find out how, here.
And does FreeCreditReports.com give you a free no obligation credit report ?
No, they don't! Read
about that here!
- Freeze your credit! Did you also know that in many states you can freeze to
credit information Even if your state is one of the few that doesn't
allow a freeze, you can still freeze your files at the three major credit
bureaus. See this
page for more information about both freezes.
- Credit card account
information thefts - if you have a credit card from a bank or
department store, you may want to periodically check this page, to see if
your account information has been stolen!
- Identity Theft - we
have loads of free facts sheets, guides, resources, contact lists, who to
report the crimes to and how to repair the damage here.
- Phishing - fake emails and fake websites pretending to be your
bank, credit card company or other agency, and asking for your private
account information. Often they claim to be from PayPal, Barclay's Bank,
Citibank, Chase Manhattan bank, or other well-known names.
- Pharming - the latest
scam, is that website the one you think it is... or a fake?
Investing, Retirement, Loans, Debt Collection and Other Financial Scams
Job and Recruiting Scams
Loan scams
Mail / Postal Scams
Medical Scams
- Domain name registration
scams - If you have a website and domain name, you receive what
looks like a bill, telling you your domain is about to expire. DON'T pay it
- see this page first!
- Medical frauds and
hoaxes - Don't be fooled
by quacks, fake medicines, magnetic shoe inserts, and electronic abdominal
exercisers. Find out the truth here!
Miscellaneous Scams: Food, Travel, Etc
- Food frauds - Believe
it or not, there are actually fake foods - usually worthless supplements and
pills and foods making false health claims.
- Travel scams - Have
you "won" a "free vacation"? But it turns out to be a sales
pitch for time sharing condominiums!
Money Making, Income, Get-Rich and "Passive Residual Income" Scams
- Get rich scheme and scam websites - Some
websites are themselves scams; claiming to offer you a good deal, when at
best, their prices are terrible and at worst, they're identity thieves!
- Multi-Level Marketing - they
may disguise themselves by selling a small amount of overpriced, hyped
products, but don't be fooled. Your chances of success are very small and
many are illegal pyramid schemes.
Mystery Shopper Scams
- Mystery or Secret Shopper
scams: Have you heard that you can get paid to shop, as a mystery
shopper or secret shopper? If you received an email that claims you can earn
a living as a secret or mystery shopper by dining at elegant restaurants,
shopping at pricey stores, or checking into luxurious hotels, beware!
Online Dating and Social Networking Scams
- Russian Dating Scams -
You hear of American men meeting beautiful Russian women online and
marrying them. But have you heard of all the guys that where scammed, and
lost thousands of dollars?
- Dating scams and scammers -
Con Men aren't just men. And some women you may meet online aren't women, at
all; just more com MEN. See these reports from victims for examples of
online dating scams.
Other Countries: Scams Targeting Residents of Other English-Speaking
Countries
(UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Etc)
Phone scams
Product Scams
- See current cases of false
advertising, defective product investigations, exaggerated product
claims, product scams and the court or FTC settlements.
- Click here to search the FTC
database to see if a particular company or product has been investigated
for false advertising, defective products or other trade issues? Just search
the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) database.
- Kinoki Foot Pads - to remove body toxins by drawing them through
the skin in your feet into a fabric pad. We thought about writing a
page about this, but honestly it's just so idiotic, that if you buy them, you
probably also have a Q-Ray bracelet in drawer and nothing we could say would
convince you that they are worthless. With regard to the Q-Ray, the FTC filed a complaint with the courts
on May 27, 2003, after several months of investigation and preparation for
litigation (see
this page on the FTC.gov website ). Remember, just because a product is advertised on TV
does NOT mean that its claims are true or approved by any government agency.
They can say whatever they like in an advertisement, and hope the government
doesn't notice or have the resources to go after them. But if you like to call Kinoki up just to express how you feel about their
product, here is their phone number: 888-338-6921. Being such a reputable
company, we're sure they'd love to hear from you about how happy you
are with their product.
Spam:
- How to Stop Spam almost forever! You don't have to face an inbox full of
porn, spam, scams and junk every day.
Here's how
to stop it.
Telemarketing Scams
- How to Block Phone Telemarketers
- Do you receive phone calls from telemarketers? Or calls
from a fax machine? Or odd calls in which no one answers on the other end?
Or perhaps a recorded voice tells you to hold on the line? See this page for
what to do!
- How to Block Junk Fax
Telemarketers
- Fax Scams - Junk faxes that are designed to look like internal company
memos or other misleading communications
Webmastering / Web development Scams
- Domain name /
registration scams - if you have a domain name, sooner or later you will
receive one of these scams.
- Search engine spam - You click on a link in Google looking for some
information and you go to a website that has nothing but more links to other
websites... and lots of advertisements. You've been spammed!
Work-from-Home scams
- Work-from-Home scams
- Tell your boss to jump in a lake. Easy data entry at home. Medical
transcription. Be crazy-like-a-fox, or just go-here-next... Yes, work
from home is possible; for the scammers who think up these work-from-home
scams to sell con you!
- Links, phone numbers and other specific information for many frauds and
scams. See the blue buttons on the left! And
see this page for resources to
help investigate a potential scam.
- Effects of Scams on the
victims, and even unrelated bystanders, as well as society.
- Do You Want To Help?
Here's your chance to help uncover scammers by investigating some of our
leads! Read these emails and see if you know whether the business is
legitimate or not!
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