Wednesday, October 26, 2005

Real Deal: Bogus checks

Meisha/Check recipient-
"They honestly looked really real."

Lesley's letter from England said her check was for "winning the lottery. The Bradley's "lottery check" came from Canada.

Hank-
"How good does this check look?"

Lori Bradley/Check recipient-
"It looks real."

But here's the real deal--each one of these is counterfeit. What’s more--thousands of incredibly realistic fake checks are now flooding the US.

Hank-
"How much money have people lost through this scam?"

Tim Buckley/Secret Service-
"Annually about 10 billlion dollars."

Lottery, job offer, rent-deposit--the set-up is exactly the same: For Lori, it was a car sale: Her on line ad got a 19,000 check from a buyer

Lori/Check recipient-
"Everything seemed fine."

Then she was told: cash the check and send $5,300 from it to "a buyers agent". And she did.

A week later--the bank informed her the check was bad--now the bank wants the money paid back!

Lori /Check recipient-
"It makes me upset and angry."

Postal inspectors seized all these fakes from the mail, consumer experts have collected just as many.

They warn, never cash any check if you're told to send back part of the money.

Susan Grant/National Consumers League-
"There is no legitimate reason why anyone would ever ask you to do that."

Problem is--no matter how many warnings go up on the internet: it’s a losing battle.

Tim Buckley/Secret Service-
Basically the criminals and predators can reach out in ways they never could have before.

Checks are so convincing even bank tellers are fooled.

Hank-
"So just because a teller gives you money doesn't mean the check is good."

Bruce Spitzer/Mass Bankers Association-
"The Bank, by law has to make the funds available in 2 to five days, but it can take much longer than that to determine it its a counterfeit check."

And if you endorse a bad check, you are responsible for the money.

Susan Grant-
"You're left holding the bag."

Bottom line: your only line of defense against this attack on your bank account is your own good sense.

Lori Bradley/Check recipient-
"This isn't real and you shouldn't fall for it."

Hank-
Be suspicious of any type of checks from an unknown source---do not cash them and do not deposit them! Instead: report them! Check our website for info on exactly what to do. That’s the Real Deal,

National Consumers League

Postal Inspector’s fake check alert

Postal Inspector’s complaint form

Report "Counterfeit Check Scams" to Local Secret Service Field Office

Report "Check Overpayment Scams" to the Federal Trade Commission