Over a tasty mixed blend of exotic juice beverages our small group conversation quickly turned to the subject of fraud. Listening to those who had much to say about it, their personal experiences made us take notice. Could this really be happening to so many? We decided to learn more, so we did.

According to the Federal Trade Commission’s website, Americans lost $905 Million to an ever growing loss problem. Apparently fraud is growing in dollar volume with one of the most common complaints coming from investors regarding promissory notes, Ponzi schemes, and unlicensed salespersons per the Financial Advisor article dated April 19, 2018 by Asia Martin. We have since learned more about a colorful assortment of fraudulent crimes leaving us to wonder – who’s next and how do we protect ourselves from it. Below we have included a few highlights from the FTC website and the FA article from which we took a few editing liberties to reduce your reading time.

Example of types of known frauds:

Affinity fraud exploits trust and friendship in the least expected and surprising locations.

Advance fee whereby upfront payments are requested to cover certain taxes, fees or commissions.

Binary Options where the investor bets on an asset’s price will rise or fall….where investors have been coerced out of its deposit or return.

High Yield Investments with unlicensed individuals dealing in unregistered investments with high returns and little risk.

Internet & Social Media fraudsters who appear legitimate through blogs and newsletters.

Prime Bank Investments per the SEC are scams because Prime Bank and Prime World Bank investments… do not exist."

Our interest did not stop here. For a bit of fun, we took this further. Here is what we found per the Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book 2017 as it relates to fraudulent activity by type. Numbers #2 and #3 were a bit of a surprise.

-Student loans up 121%

-Landline telephone new accounts up 150%

-Landline telephone existing accounts up 109%

(Who has land lines? Well, a good few of us as we have since learned.)

Please go to the following links for further information if you want to learn more:

Federal Trade Commission:

https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2018/03/ftc-releases-annual-summary-complaints-reported-consumers

Financial Advisor – as reported at its online article of April 19, 2018

https://www.fa-mag.com/news/common-investment-frauds-38062.html?print

Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book 2017: Identity Theft Reports by Type

https://www.ftc.gov/policy/reports/policy-reports/commission-staff-reports/consumer-sentinel-network-data-book-2017/id-theft-reports-by-type