Court Duty Summons Scam
Reported by CBS 2006

Most of us take a summons for jury duty seriously, but enough people skip out on their civic duty that a new and ominous kind of scam has surfaced. Fall for it and your identity could be stolen, reports CBS.

In this con, someone calls pretending to be a court official who threateningly says a warrant has been issued for your arrest because you didn't show up for jury duty. 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. Sometimes they even ask for credit card numbers. Give out any of this information and bingo! Your identity just got stolen.

The scam has been reported so far in 11 states, including Oklahoma, Illinois, Colorado, Texas and California and Oregon.

This (scam) is particularly insidious because they use intimidation over the phone to try to bully people into giving information by pretending they're with the court system.

The FBI and the federal court system have issued nationwide alerts on their web sites, warning consumers about the fraud.

Redwood City woman charged with Internet scams, credit card fraud
By Kimra McPherson

Mercury News

A woman has been arrested in Redwood City in connection with several Internet scams and cases of credit card fraud -- and police believe she could have more victims. Claudia Lindhorst, 23, was arraigned this week in San Mateo County court and pleaded not guilty to numerous charges of identity theft, grand theft, burglary and forgery, Deputy District Attorney Peter Lynch said. She is being held in ...read more

More Scams and Frauds

• Scamster Ran Identity Theft Scheme From Prison
  Four-time felon proves telecommuting isn't just for legitimate businesses.
  
   
• "Affinity" Scams On The Rise
  Church, social, civic groups often targeted by seemingly trustworthy scam artists.
  
   
• Prudential to Pay $600 Million for Market Timing
  Firm chiseled investors in more than 50 mutual funds.
  
   
• Illinois Sues Annuity Salesmen for Using Deceptive Mailers
  Mailings to seniors intended to extract personal financial data, state charges.
  
   
• Movieland.com Sued for Spyware
  Company lured consumers into a "free trial" that wasn't free, Washington charges.
  
   
• Identity Thieves Stay One Step Ahead
  Criminals are becoming more clever in their attempts to steal consumers' identities. In New York, the Suffolk County Police Department says it has recently investigated three new variations of the identity theft scam.
  
   
• Email Scam Has JFK Conspiracy Twist
  The latest 419 scam -- the email spam scams named for section 419 of the Nigerian penal code -- is designed to hook Kennedy assassination buffs.
  
   
• Illinois Shuts Down Mortgage "Rescue" Scam
  Illinois regulators have shut down a "mortgage rescue" scam that defrauded vulnerable Chicago metropolitan area residents of their homes.
  
   
• Texas Insurance Firm Defrauded 57,000 Military Personnel
  The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed suit against a Waco, Texas, insurance company and its affiliates for targeting American military personnel with a deceptive sales program that misleadingly suggested that investing in the company's product would make one a millionaire.
  
   
• North Carolina Sues Telecom Telemarketer For Deception
  North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper has filed suit against a telemarketer that tricked North Carolina seniors into paying too much for long distance phone service.
  
   
• Atlantic Lottery Warns Consumers Of Scam
  Atlantic Lottery Corporation, which runs games in Canada, is warning U.S. consumers that scammers are using its name to try to steal money from unsuspecting victims. The company says the latest fraud case targets individuals in the United States in a lottery letter scam.
  
   
• California Sues Payday Loan Business
  California Attorney General Bill Lockyer has filed a $2 million-plus lawsuit against Los Angeles County-based Fast Cash for violating a state law that prohibits payday loan businesses from suing for triple the amount of the check when customers' bank accounts do not hold sufficient funds to honor post-dated checks written to secure the loan.
  
   
• Wisconsin Sues ILD Teleservices
  Wisconsin Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager says her office has expanded a pending telecommunications fraud lawsuit to include a telephone billing aggregator, ILD Telecommunications, Inc., based in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
  
   
• PayPal Offers Advice On Spotting A Spoof
  "Spoof" emails are spam messages that appear to be from a well known company, such as PayPal. Usually the email warns the recipient that fraudulent activity has been detected in their account and instructs them to click on a link and enter their personal account information.
  
   
• Credit or Debit? Picking the Proper Plastic
  Using plastic for payment is becoming so commonplace that most shoppers don't think twice about which card they're pulling out of their wallet.
  
   
• Non-Profit Warns Scammers Are Using Its Name
  Scammers are said to be calling Arizona residents, pretending to be from a non-profit health care organization, trying to trick people into revealing personal information. The organization, Sun Health, says in some cases the scammers are even trying to gain access to victims' homes.
  
   
• Seasilver Promoters Ordered to Pay Almost $120 Million
  The marketers of Seasilver, an alleged phony cure-all, have been ordered to pay almost $120 million for failing to comply with an earlier order requiring them to pay $3 million in consumer redress.
  
   
• "Vishing" Is Latest Twist In Identity Theft Scam
  It's called "vishing," and it's similar to "phishing" scams that rely on email to steal consumers' identities. Vishing uses Internet telephone calls.
  
   
• Evolving PayPal Phishing Scam Snares Victims
  Another email phishing scam is duping victims because it seems more legitimate than past attempts, experts say. The emails attempt to gain the victims' credit card numbers and target PayPal account holders.
  
   
• IRS Renews E-mail Alert Following New Scams
  Following a recent increase in scam e-mails, the Internal Revenue Service is again warning taxpayers to be on the lookout for bogus e-mails claiming to be from the tax agency.
  
   
• Girls Gone Wild Still Going Wild
  Even after a FTC scolding and several class action lawsuits, Mantra Films, the makers of "Girls Gone Wild," are still making it difficult for consumers to cancel their subscriptions, according to consumer complaints filed with ConsumerAffairs.Com.
  
   
• Public Citizen Disputes Low-Power Laser Stop-Smoking Claims
  Smokers who pay to be zapped by lasers in an effort to kick the habit are victims of fraud, according to the watchdog group Public Citizen.
  
   
• Florida Sues Water Extraction Company for Deceiving Seniors
  The office of Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist has sued a Broward County water extraction company for overcharging elderly consumers and placing liens on their property if they did not pay the inflated fees. Gator Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning, Inc., increased its prices by as much as 300 percent in the aftermath of the last two hurricane seasons.
  
   
• Student Travel Service Agrees To Modify Marketing
  Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller has raised concerns with the marketing company for "People to People International" regarding how the company portrays the selection of students for its "Student Ambassador" travel-abroad trips -- and the company has agreed to modify its representations.
  
   
• West Virginia Closes Advance Fee Scam
  West Virginia Attorney General Darrell McGraw says his office has successfully shut down a Canadian advanced fee loan scam operating under the name New Balance Express.
  
   
• Phishing Scam Targets PayPal Users
  With all the recent disclosures of stolen data, consumers are not exactly surprised when they are told that their identity has been stolen. A clever scammer is counting on that heightened sense of awareness with an email scam targeted at PayPal account holders.
  
   
• Debt Management Telemarketers Settle FTC Charges
  A credit counseling service and related companies and individuals have agreed to pay $926,754 to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they made false claims about their debt management program and violated the FTC's Do Not Call Rule.
  
   
• Consumers Don't Make Thousands Stuffing Envelopes
  A set of final judgments and orders has been issued settling charges against two Florida-based principals and the corporations they ran for misleading consumers into believing they could earn up to $3,000 per week stuffing envelopes at home.
  
   
• North Carolina Shuts Down Two More Telemarketers
  One telemarketing scam that pitched phony English lessons and auto mechanics training and another that promised credit cards and credit repair but failed to deliver have been permanently barred from doing business in North Carolina.
  
   
• Washington Shuts Down Bogus Long-Term Care Scheme
  A former Washington state insurance agent has agreed to settle charges that he deceptively marketed in-home care services to senior citizens.
  
   
• FTC Shuts Down Another "Credit Repair" Scheme
  "Project Credit Despair," the Federal Trade Commission crackdown on 20 operations that deceptively claimed they could remove negative but accurate information from consumers' credit reports has yielded another court order.
  
   
• Identity Thieves Targeting PayPal Account Holders
  Among the spam messages hitting consumers' email inboxes lately is a message that appears to be from PayPal, warning the recipient that they are the apparent target of hackers.
  
   
• New Jersey Sues Five Health Club Operators
  Five independent health club operators in New Jersey are charged with violating a number of consumer laws, including failure to notify customers of their right to cancel contracts and obtain refunds.
  
   
• Many Scammers No Longer Accept Credit Cards
  Scammers have a number of ways to steal from you, but the credit card is losing popularity among the criminal class.
  
   
• "The Check Has Cleared" Doesn't Mean The Check Is Good
  If a bank teller informs you a check has cleared, that doesn't necessarily mean the check is good.
  
   
• Scammers Use Immigration Debate To Target Immigrants
  There's nothing new about scam artists preying on immigrants legal residency, work permits or citizenship. But today's scammers are customizing new schemes that capitalize on the national immigration reform debate and the widespread news coverage it has engendered.
  
   
• West Virginia Settles With Cambridge Credit Counseling
  West Virginia has reached a settlement agreement with Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp. of Agawam, Massachusetts, that will result in refunds of $250,000 to hundreds of West Virginia consumers who were overcharged for the company's services.
  
   
• Arizona Wins $4 Million in Refunds for Phony Supplements
  Some 25,000 checks totaling more than $4 million have been mailed to consumers who purchased fake nutritional supplements from Scottsdale, Arizona-based C.P. Direct.
  
   
• Iowa Sues Vertrue For Consumer Fraud
  Another state has sued Connecticut-based Vertrue, the fast-growing marketing company that pushes a proliferation of buying club "memberships" through negative option transactions.
  
   
• Iowa Sues Vertrue For Consumer Fraud
  Another state has sued Connecticut-based Vertrue, the fast-growing marketing company that pushes a proliferation of buying club "memberships" through negative option transactions.
  
   
• Scam Targets Job Hunters on Careerbuilder.com
  Consumers are being advised to watch out for a new scam targeting job hunters searching for career opportunities on the popular Web site CareerBuilder.com.
  
   
• File Sharing Site Settles FTC Charges
  A company that advertised that membership in its Web site would allow users of peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing programs to transfer copyrighted materials without violating the law has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges.
  
   
• Predatory Lender Offered Internet Service As A Perk
  Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has obtained an asset freeze and sued a predatory "payday" lending company that has offices strategically located near military bases to allow it to exploit those serving the country.
  
   
• Texas Drains Fake Fuel Pill Scheme
  Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has won a temporary restraining order and asset freeze against Texas-based BioPerformance Inc.
  
   
• Pennsylvania Prosecutes Home Alarm Company
  Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett says a York County business will refund consumers, pay fines and change its sales campaigns and contracts following claims that it deceptively marketed and sold electronic in-home burglar, fire and medic alarm monitoring systems to the elderly and/or disabled.
  
   
• Study Disputes Supplement's Cholesterol Claims
  A new study suggests that use of the nutritional supplement policosanol, often promoted as a "natural" substitute for statin drugs, does not lower cholesterol levels any more than a placebo.
  
   
• California Police Make Arrests In Alleged Ponzi Scheme
  Police in southern California have arrested two men, charging them with running a phony investment scheme that raked in over $68 million.
  
   
• Florida Opens "Cramming" Probe
  Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist has launched an investigation into five telephone companies for placing unauthorized charges on consumers' bills. The investigation may also expand to cover the activities of ILD Teleservices and Axcess Internet Solutions.
  
   
• Dumpster-Diving Scammers Use Scraps To Rip You Off
  If you're not running old credit card receipts through the shredder, you should be. Police in South Bend, Indiana are investigating a series of clever scams where "dumpster divers" have obtained receipts from the trash and used them to make unauthorized purchases.
  
   
• Indiana Fines Mortgage "Rescue" Firm
  Indiana is the latest state to clamp down on so-called mortgage rescue firms. At the request of the Indiana Attorney General's Office, a judge has ordered an Indianapolis company to make refunds to three consumers.
  
   
• Major Weight-Loss Marketers Pay $3 Million
  Sellers making questionable weight-loss and fat-loss claims to peddle skin gels and diet supplements will pay $3 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that their deceptive claims violated federal law.
  
   
• Scammer's Ad For Bogus Loan Snags Wisconsin Couple
  A Wisconsin couple saw an ad in their local newspaper for a $30,000 loan from New Jersey-based Capital Group. The terms were attractive so they applied.
  
   
• Credit Counseling Agency Pays $2.4 Million to Settle Federal Charges
  A credit counseling agency and related companies have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they deceptively marketed themselves as a not-for-profit enterprise to entice financially distressed consumers to enroll in debt management plans, and then failed to deliver on promises of personalized credit counseling and dramatic and immediate interest rate reductions.
  
   
• FTC Asked to Crack Down on Videos Aimed at Infants
  Citing a lack of evidence that screen media is beneficial for babies and growing concern that it may be harmful, a consumer group has filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) against Baby Einstein and Brainy Baby, two of the leading producers of videos for infants and toddlers, for false and deceptive advertising.
  
   
• Arizona Settles with Internet Work-At-Home Promoter
  The state of Arizona has reached a $250,000 settlement with Smart Advertising Solutions, LLC, a Tempe company that sold Internet-based business opportunities to consumers nationwide.
  
   
• Home Depot, Monogram Credit Card Bank To Pay Connecticut $672,000
  "No Interest, No Payment" Offers Weren't What They Seemed, state alleged.
  
   
• Pennsylvania Asks Court to Shut Down "Living Trust" Sales Scheme
  Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett has filed a second civil lawsuit against the operators of a living trust sales scheme, who are accused of deceiving elderly consumers into purchasing Revocable Living Trusts and other estate planning products that pay the sellers high commissions, but may not be in the consumers' best interest.
  
   
• Marketing Firm Prohibited From Baiting Consumers With "Live Checks"
  It's called a "live check" promotion. A check for a small amount comes in the mail with seemingly no strings attached. But consumers who cash the checks find themselves obligated for products or services they never intended to buy.
  
   
• West Virginia Sues To Stop Collection Efforts For Bogus Magazine Sales
  West Virginia has gone to court to stop a Florida collection agency from trying to collect debts supposedly based on magazine subscription purchases.
  
   
• Online Car Sale Scams Roll On
  Scammers continue to use online automotive and auction sites to cheat would-be car buyers out of thousands of dollars.
  
   
• Online Fraud Rates Drop to Near In-Person Rates
  A survey of retail merchants finds that online fraud rates are declining to about the same rates reported by brick-and-mortar stores, while fraud spikes and fraudsters' use of increasingly sophisticated schemes are keeping retailers on their toes, according to the Merchant Risk Council (MRC), an trade association.
  
   
• Feds Propose Tougher Controls On Work At Home Schemes
  The Federal Trade Commission has proposed tougher rules to protect consumers who are targeted by work-at-home scams. The new rule changes are proposed to go into effect later this year.
  
   
• Florida Judgment to End Data Broker's Business
  Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist has requested a judgment against Global Information Group to stop its unlawful sales of consumer information. Once signed by a judge, the consent judgment and permanent injunction will end the company's operations.
  
   
• Rebate: Discount or Lotto Ticket?
  You can't believe your luck. While trolling Best Buy for a new computer package, you found a Compaq system with color printer, flat-screen monitor and plenty of memory. Best of all, it comes with three mail-in rebates, shaving $250 off the sales price.
  
   
• Minerals Technologies: New Twist On The Lotto Scam
  Scammers, apparently operating from Canada, are attempting to defraud consumers with the tried-and-true lottery scam, but police say they have added a few new wrinkles. For one thing, along with the notification letter, victims also receive a check from a real company, Mineral Technologies.
  
   
• Missouri Mobile Home Dealer Hit With $564,000 Penalty
  One of central Missouri's largest mobile home dealerships will pay more than $564,000 in consumer restitution and penalties to the state under a consent judgment and permanent injunction obtained by Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon.
  
   
• Scammers Cash In On Immigration Debate
  Scammers tend to follow the news, pushing schemes that carry just a hint of credibility because the victim may have recently heard something about it on the news. It happened with the medicare prescription drug benefit, and now it's happening with immigration.
  
   
• SoftwareOnline.com Settles Suit
  SoftwareOnline.com, Inc. will pay $190,000 to settle allegations that it misrepresented the extent to which its software is necessary for security, bombarded potential customers with pop-up ads and used deceptive billing practices.
  
   
• Scammers Use Concorde Crash In Identity Theft Scheme
  Experts at computer security firm SophosLabs are warning computer users to be wary of a new email scam, which dupes recipients into believing they could receive millions from a bank account belonging to a victim of the Concorde air disaster.
  
   
• NYPD Nabs Alleged Swindler
  Police in New York have arrested Thomas Mark Kirshner, charging him with a number of real estate investment scams stretching back more than 20 years, defrauding victims out of at least $5 million.
  
   
• Ohio Sues Firm For Helping Telemarketing Fraud
  Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro today sued a Columbus check processor for helping telemarketers in Canada siphon money out of Ohio consumers' bank accounts in violation of the state's consumer protection laws.
  
   
• Pedia Loss Settles Federal Charges
  The marketers of Pedia Loss, a purported children's weight-loss product, and Fabulously Feminine, a supposed female libido enhancement product, have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they made false and misleading claims about their products.
  
   
• New Phone Scam Plays on Victims' Emotions
  A new scam has victimized consumers in recent weeks. In each of the reported cases, the scammer has claimed to be the victim's family member, in some sort of trouble, and in immediate need of money.
  
   
• Investment Firm Sold Millions in Unregistered Securities
  Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon has filed a lawsuit to shut down a St. Louis company that sold at least $3.8 million in unregistered securities to investors on the promise of exorbitant rates of return.
  
   
• Outbreak of DirecTV Porn Charges Hits Philadelphia
  A story that never really goes away is DirecTV's odd habit of billing customers for "adult" movies they insist they did not order or watch. The latest outbreak of bogus bills occurred in Philadelphia, where it was exposed by WPVI-TV's consumer reporter, Nydia Han.
  
   
• New York Sues Major Spyware Distributor
  New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer has sued one of the most elusive internet spyware companies, alleging that the firm surreptitiously installed millions of pop-up ad programs on consumers' computers.
  
   
• FTC Trumps "FreeFlixTix" Scheme
  An Internet marketer will pay a $900,000 civil penalty for violating the CAN-SPAM Act, the largest penalty yet for illegal spam, according to the Federal Trade Commission. The company also is permanently prohibited from its unlawful practices, according to a consent decree signed by the company.
  
   
• New York Accuses Gratis Internet of Largest Deliberate Privacy Breach Ever
  New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer has filed suit against a company responsible for what is believed to be the largest deliberate breach of privacy in Internet history. The suit against Gratis Internet alleges that the company sold personal information obtained from millions of consumers under a strict promise of confidentiality.
  
   
• West Virginia Shuts Down Advanced Fee Loan Scheme
  West Virginia Attorney General Darrell McGraw, Jr. said he has shut down a Canadian advanced fee loan scam operating under the name Global Capital Solutions.

NOW AVAILABLE FOR IMMEDIATE DOWNLOAD!
Yours Free!

I have  literally spent hundreds of hours researching Identity Theft and How To Protect Yourself From Identity Theft. I put it all into an easy to read e-book and its yours absolutely Free.

Enter your Name and a valid email to receive my Protecting Yourself From Identity Theft
 e-Book.

We Respect Your email Privacy