Bad Credit Blog

Our office received the following memorandum this morning from a major news source that we subscribe to.  They recommended that we pass it along to everyone who reads our blog.

As you read the following remember… this basic rule always applies: Do NOT give any personal information over the phone if you did not at least initiate the call.

Jury Duty Scam
This has been verified by the FBI (their link is also included below). Please pass this on to everyone in your email address book. It is spreading fast so be prepared should you get this call.

Most of us take those summonses for jury duty seriously, but enough people skip out on their civic duty, that a new and ominous kind of fraud has surfaced.

The caller claims to be a jury coordinator. If you protest that you never received a summons for jury duty, the scammer asks you for your Social Security number and date of birth so he or she can verify the information and cancel the arrest warrant. Give out any of this information and bingo; your identity was just stolen.

The fraud has been reported so far in 11 states, including Oklahoma , Illinois , and Colorado . This (swindle) is particularly insidious because they use intimidation over the phone to try to bully people into giving information by pretending they are with the court system. The FBI and the federal court system have issued nationwide alerts on their web sites, warning consumers about the fraud.

Now aside from the obvious what can you do should you get one of these calls? If you are a member of LifeLock, you can relax because your identification is well protected. No one can steal it, and that is backed up with a million dollar guarantee.

Here is what LifeLock Offers You For Only $10 per Month!

• Proactive Identity Theft Protection
• Reduce Junk Mail
• Reduce Credit Card Offers
• $1 Million Service Guarantee

If ever you lose your wallet (or it’s stolen), just give them a call. They will transfer you to a certified Recovery Specialist that will help you:

• Identify your missing documents
• Contact each credit, bank or document issuing company while you’re on the phone
• Cancel the lost cards, licenses and documents (including your credit/debit cards, driver’s licenses, social security cards, insurance cards, passports, checkbooks and travelers checks*)
• Fill out the paperwork and request new replacements
• Initiate the fraud affidavit and police reports if the wallet was stolen
• Depending on the severity of the situation, additional follow-up and resolution calls will be arranged.

In many cases, they will be able to replace all of your documents for you. *However, some states require you to be involved with us directly. If this happens, we’ll make it as easy as possible by filling out the necessary forms ahead of time and setting appointments at your convenience - all you have to do is show up.

Think about it. If identity theft is so rampant that the FBI is posting articles about it, why have you NOT signed up for LifeLock yet? Don’t think because you have bad credit nobody will want your identity! Bad or good credit someone can still set up bank accounts and get credit cards in your name. And after they ruin your credit you’ll be stuck trying to fix the mess!

Source:

http://www.fbi.gov/page2/june06/jury_scams060206.htm

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