Identify thefts remain a problem

MOSES LAKE - Scammers are trying everything to obtain your personal information for financial gain, according to a Better Business Bureau spokesperson.

Luring people to false Internet sites by e-mail, asking people to send wire transfers to strangers, and identity theft remain consumer problems, said Norma Miller, a Tri-Cities-based spokesperson for the Better Business Bureau (BBB).

"There are a lot of things consumers need to be careful of," she commented. "If someone knows what they're doing, they can have your credit card maxed out in less than 30 minutes. All it takes is one piece of information to fall into the wrong hands."

People must be careful about divulging information to people they do not know.

But there are ways you can protect yourself, she says.

They include:

* Understanding contracts and customer agreements. Waiting a night before buying an expensive item is also recommended.

* Protect your identity and your pocketbook by shredding personal documents, watching bank accounts regularly, having current anti-virus software and being wary of unfamiliar e-mail attachments or links.

* Scammers send out e-mails to people in hopes they reach them at just the right time.

* Some people have received the e-mails after setting up a new online account and are misled into thinking the message is linked to the account.

* Using secure sites for online shopping is also advised.

* Never wire money to strangers. This is because scammers fool victims by asking them to wire money. Unlike canceling a check, wire transfers cannot be retrieved after being sent, she said.

"Anything that says to wire money out is a red flag," Miller said. "Don't do it. You don't know who you're sending it to and it's not retrievable."

* Know complaint organizations.

Complaints can be filed with the BBB, at www.bbb.org/us/file-complaint, Federal Trade Commission, at www.ftc.gov, or the state Attorney General's Office, at www.atg.wa.gov.

The BBB also refers victims to their appropriate police department or sheriff's office to submit a report.

People should also read BBB business reviews of members  by visiting www.bbb.org/us/Find-Business-Reviews/.

The BBB also offers reviews on nonaccredited businesses, by listing how many complaints and if they company answered the complaints.

After being scammed, victims are embarrassed to come out and say how they were scammed and so naive.

In talking with bank employees, Miller is hearing the same things.

"They end up having to close accounts and change deposits," she commented.

She gives presentations about consumer protection to chambers of commerce, service clubs and senior centers because seniors are "very, very trusting," Miller said.

"I hear all the time 'the man on the phone was so nice, he would have never lied to me,'" she said.  "The older generation is more trusting that the younger generation. They used to do everything on a handshake. There's no way you can do that."

Another type of identity theft is criminal identify theft.

A Moses Lake mom shared her daughter's identity theft story with the Columbia Basin Herald.

She asked that her family's name not be published because of the ongoing criminal case.

The girl's identity was stolen in the 1990s when she was a teenager. It was her friend.

Because her daughter was so young, her mom helped her straighten up the mess.

"It was a criminal identity theft, which was unusual, not financial," the mother recalled. "No one racked up any bills."

Her daughter's friend went to jail under her daughter's name and birth date for allegedly shoplifting in a nearby county.

The friend gave her daughter's name to law enforcement.

It's not believed she showed police any picture identification in jail. She reportedly didn't provide a Social Security number at the time.

"They were best friends for years, until they parted ways," the mom said. "She knew a lot about my family and my daughter."

They learned there was a problem when bills for restitution and court costs kept arriving in the mail from the counties where the friend was arrested.

The problem appears to have been resolved, but they experienced road blocks trying to change court records.

"We had to get several different fingerprints sent to several different counties," her mother said.

To this day, her daughter has a freeze on her credit to protect her from financial theft, which will probably stay in place for the rest of her life.

As a safeguard, they also check credit reports annually.