"A work of art is the unique result of a unique temperament."Oscar Wilde
|
| |
How did I fall so deep into tax arrears?
Sales are up and the money is flowing into your bank account. Think all that money is yours? Think again! If you're tracking any taxes such as GST or PST, a portion of those funds belong to the CRA (Canada Revenue Agency). On the one hand it's easy to ...
Retiring Or Leaving The Company -- How To Properly Do An IRA Rollover
Whether you are retiring or changing jobs, you need to know what to do with your employer sponsored retirement plan before your leave. Once you leave a job for whatever reason, you can choose to: • Rollover the money into an IRA (ira rollover) • Take the ...
Small Business Tax Issues for Self-Employed Individuals
The United States is a nation of entrepreneurs. There are literally tens of millions of self-employed individuals that enjoy pursuing their dream business. Of course, few of you enjoy the paperwork and confusing tax issues that arise from owning your own ...
|
|
|
| |
Financial scams have been around for a long time. Anyone who has ever received a message from someone in Nigeria with millions of dollars to share might be surprised to find out that this scam has been around, in some form, since the early part of the twentieth century. It has been updated for the Internet Age, and as many people have discovered, it still works. With many people rightly concerned about the increased amount of financial fraud that uses the Internet as a tool, some people might be surprised to see that another old form of fraud is making a comeback, and that is telemarketing fraud.
A current telemarketing scam involves a caller who claims to represent a company that has recently held a sweepstakes. The caller informs the person who answers the phone that he or she has won a prize of some value. It might be a car or a washing machine, but it will always be something that most people would accept with little thought. The caller then explains that there will be some costs associated with delivering the prize to the winner, such as shipping charges and taxes. These charges, the caller explains, can be paid for with a credit card. Then the caller asks the victim for personal information, including a credit card number.
Of course, there is no prize and there are no fees. Once the caller has the victim's credit card number and other personal information, he or she can then use this information to spend like crazy using the victim's credit card. Or they can arrange some more elaborate crimes using identity theft. Either way, the victim will find themselves with a very complicated situation that may take years to unravel.
Should anyone call you to tell you that you have won something, be careful. Ask if they can provide the information in writing. Be aware that in most states, it is illegal to ask for fees from someone who has actually one a prize. If it is a prize, then it should be free, and that includes delivery. If you are at all suspicious of the person on the phone, then hang up. It is always better to be safe than sorry.
About The Author
©Copyright 2005-06 by Retro Marketing. Charles Essmeier is the owner of Retro Marketing, a firm devoted to informational Websites, including http://www.homeequityhelp.net, a site devoted to information regarding home equity lending.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
