{"id":8444,"date":"2021-06-01T10:15:37","date_gmt":"2021-06-01T14:15:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/?p=8444"},"modified":"2021-06-02T14:13:47","modified_gmt":"2021-06-02T18:13:47","slug":"fakecheckscams2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/2021\/06\/01\/fakecheckscams2021\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Spot, Avoid and Report Fake Check Scams"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-1 fusion-flex-container nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"--awb-border-radius-top-left:0px;--awb-border-radius-top-right:0px;--awb-border-radius-bottom-right:0px;--awb-border-radius-bottom-left:0px;--awb-flex-wrap:wrap;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row fusion-flex-align-items-flex-start fusion-flex-content-wrap\" style=\"max-width:1216.8px;margin-left: calc(-4% \/ 2 );margin-right: calc(-4% \/ 2 );\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-0 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-flex-column\" style=\"--awb-bg-size:cover;--awb-width-large:100%;--awb-margin-top-large:0px;--awb-spacing-right-large:1.92%;--awb-margin-bottom-large:20px;--awb-spacing-left-large:1.92%;--awb-width-medium:100%;--awb-order-medium:0;--awb-spacing-right-medium:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-medium:1.92%;--awb-width-small:100%;--awb-order-small:0;--awb-spacing-right-small:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-small:1.92%;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-column-has-shadow fusion-flex-justify-content-flex-start fusion-content-layout-column\"><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-1\"><h3>How to Spot, Avoid and Report Fake Check Scams<\/h3>\n<p>In a fake check scam, someone that you don\u2019t know asks you to deposit a check \u2013 most likely for a large amount of money, and usually for more than what you are owed \u2013 and send some of the money to another person. The scammer will <!--more-->always have a story as to why you can\u2019t keep the money. They might say you will need to cover taxes and fees or buy supplies.<\/p>\n<p>Fake checks come in many forms. The checks can come in the form of personal checks, cashier\u2019s checks, money orders, or a check delivered electronically.<\/p>\n<h3>Types of Fake Checks Scams<\/h3>\n<p>There are many different types of checks scams. Here are some examples:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Mystery Shopping.<\/li>\n<li>Personal assistants.<\/li>\n<li>Car wrap decals.<\/li>\n<li>Claiming prizes.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Why Do These Scams Work?<\/h3>\n<p>The scams work because fake checks generally look just like real checks, even to bank financial institution employees. The checks that the scammers use are often printed with the names and addresses of legitimate financial institutions. They may even be real checks that were written on bank accounts that belong to identity theft victims.<\/p>\n<h3>How to Avoid a Fake Check Scam<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Never use money from a check to send gift cards, money orders, or wire money to strangers or someone you just met. Once you wire money, or buy gift cards and send them the PIN, it is like giving someone cash. It\u2019s almost impossible to get the money back.<\/li>\n<li>Toss offers that ask you to pay for a prize. When a prize is free, you should not have to pay for it.<\/li>\n<li>Don\u2019t accept a check for more than the selling price. It is more than likely a scam.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>What to Do If You Sent Money to a Scammer<\/h3>\n<p>Gift cards are never for payments. If someone demands payment by a gift card, they are most likely a scammer. If you paid a scammer with a gift card, tell the company that issued the card right away. When you contact the company, tell them that the gift card was used in a scam and ask if you can be refunded.\u00a0 Also be sure to tell the store where you bought the gift card as soon as possible.<\/p>\n<p>If you have wired money to a scammer, call the money transfer company immediately to report the fraud and file a complaint. You can reach the complaint department of MoneyGram at 1-800-MONEYGRAM or Western Union at 1-800-325-6000. Ask for the money transfer to be reversed. It is unlikely to happen but it\u2019s important to ask.<\/p>\n<p>If you have paid a scammer with a money order, contact the company that issued the money order right away to see if you can stop payment. Another important thing to do is try to stop the delivery of the money order. If you sent the money order by U.S. mail, contact the U.S. Postal Inspection Service at 877-876-2455. Otherwise, contact whatever delivery service you used as soon as possible.<\/p>\n<h3>Where to Report Fraud<\/h3>\n<p>If you think you\u2019ve been targeted by a fake check scam, report it to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The <a href=\"https:\/\/reportfraud.ftc.gov\/#\/?pid=B\">Federal trade Commission<\/a><\/li>\n<li>The <a href=\"https:\/\/reportfraud.ftc.gov\/#\/?pid=B\">U.S. Postal Inspection Service<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.naag.org\/\">state Attorney General<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><div class=\"fusion-image-element in-legacy-container\" style=\"--awb-caption-title-font-family:var(--h2_typography-font-family);--awb-caption-title-font-weight:var(--h2_typography-font-weight);--awb-caption-title-font-style:var(--h2_typography-font-style);--awb-caption-title-size:var(--h2_typography-font-size);--awb-caption-title-transform:var(--h2_typography-text-transform);--awb-caption-title-line-height:var(--h2_typography-line-height);--awb-caption-title-letter-spacing:var(--h2_typography-letter-spacing);\"><span class=\" fusion-imageframe imageframe-none imageframe-1 hover-type-none\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" title=\"Check Scam-01\" src=\"http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-01-1024x1024.png\" alt class=\"img-responsive wp-image-8445\" srcset=\"http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-01-200x200.png 200w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-01-400x400.png 400w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-01-600x600.png 600w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-01-800x800.png 800w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-01.png 1080w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, (max-width: 850px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/span><\/div><div class=\"fusion-image-element in-legacy-container\" style=\"--awb-caption-title-font-family:var(--h2_typography-font-family);--awb-caption-title-font-weight:var(--h2_typography-font-weight);--awb-caption-title-font-style:var(--h2_typography-font-style);--awb-caption-title-size:var(--h2_typography-font-size);--awb-caption-title-transform:var(--h2_typography-text-transform);--awb-caption-title-line-height:var(--h2_typography-line-height);--awb-caption-title-letter-spacing:var(--h2_typography-letter-spacing);\"><span class=\" fusion-imageframe imageframe-none imageframe-2 hover-type-none\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" title=\"Check Scam-02\" src=\"http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-02-1024x1024.png\" alt class=\"img-responsive wp-image-8446\" srcset=\"http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-02-200x200.png 200w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-02-400x400.png 400w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-02-600x600.png 600w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-02-800x800.png 800w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-02.png 1080w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, (max-width: 850px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/span><\/div><div class=\"fusion-image-element in-legacy-container\" style=\"--awb-caption-title-font-family:var(--h2_typography-font-family);--awb-caption-title-font-weight:var(--h2_typography-font-weight);--awb-caption-title-font-style:var(--h2_typography-font-style);--awb-caption-title-size:var(--h2_typography-font-size);--awb-caption-title-transform:var(--h2_typography-text-transform);--awb-caption-title-line-height:var(--h2_typography-line-height);--awb-caption-title-letter-spacing:var(--h2_typography-letter-spacing);\"><span class=\" fusion-imageframe imageframe-none imageframe-3 hover-type-none\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" title=\"Check Scam-03\" src=\"http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-03-1024x1024.png\" alt class=\"img-responsive wp-image-8447\" srcset=\"http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-03-200x200.png 200w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-03-400x400.png 400w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-03-600x600.png 600w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-03-800x800.png 800w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-03.png 1080w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, (max-width: 850px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/span><\/div><div class=\"fusion-image-element in-legacy-container\" style=\"--awb-caption-title-font-family:var(--h2_typography-font-family);--awb-caption-title-font-weight:var(--h2_typography-font-weight);--awb-caption-title-font-style:var(--h2_typography-font-style);--awb-caption-title-size:var(--h2_typography-font-size);--awb-caption-title-transform:var(--h2_typography-text-transform);--awb-caption-title-line-height:var(--h2_typography-line-height);--awb-caption-title-letter-spacing:var(--h2_typography-letter-spacing);\"><span class=\" fusion-imageframe imageframe-none imageframe-4 hover-type-none\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" title=\"Check Scam-04\" src=\"http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-04-1024x1024.png\" alt class=\"img-responsive wp-image-8448\" srcset=\"http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-04-200x200.png 200w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-04-400x400.png 400w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-04-600x600.png 600w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-04-800x800.png 800w, http:\/\/10.130.206.81\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Check-Scam-04.png 1080w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, (max-width: 850px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/span><\/div><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-title title fusion-title-1 fusion-title-text fusion-title-size-five\"><div class=\"title-sep-container title-sep-container-left fusion-no-large-visibility fusion-no-medium-visibility fusion-no-small-visibility\"><div class=\"title-sep sep- sep-solid\" style=\"border-color:#e0dede;\"><\/div><\/div><span class=\"awb-title-spacer fusion-no-large-visibility fusion-no-medium-visibility fusion-no-small-visibility\"><\/span><h5 class=\"fusion-title-heading title-heading-left\" style=\"margin:0;\">This information was obtained through the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.consumer.ftc.gov\/articles\/mobile-payment-apps-how-avoid-scam-when-you-use-one\">Federal Trade Commission<\/a>.<\/h5><span class=\"awb-title-spacer\"><\/span><div class=\"title-sep-container title-sep-container-right\"><div class=\"title-sep sep- sep-solid\" style=\"border-color:#e0dede;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How to Spot, Avoid and Report Fake Check Scams In a fake check scam, someone that you don\u2019t know asks you to deposit a check \u2013 most likely for a large amount of money, and usually for more than what you are owed \u2013 and send some of the money to another person. The scammer [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8449,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[108],"tags":[115,116,117,111],"class_list":["post-8444","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-scams","tag-checks","tag-checkscam","tag-fakecheck","tag-scam"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v15.2.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How to Spot, Avoid and Report Fake Check Scams - Widget Financial<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Fake checks come in many forms. 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