I really wish sometimes that nobody was gullible enough to fall for robocall scams. Otherwise, they wouldn't exist. Clearly, someone must be taking them seriously if they're still around.
Today's call was from "WCA", talking about health insurance. Looking up their opening line ("Hello, this is WCA calling") shows me that this group, like most of the others, has been active for at least a couple of years and nobody seems to be able to find them and arrest them. Looking at search results, WCA has also tried several of the other pitches other robocall scam rings use, like Home Protection's security systems and Cardholder Services' credit card debt assistance.
It's becoming increasingly obvious that there is not a single legit telemarketer left in the country. Non-criminal money is made on the Internet now... not to say that the Internet doesn't have any crime. Heck, just look at my previous blog entry. Stay smart and ignore robocalls.
Showing posts with label Advice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Advice. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Sunday, February 19, 2012
How to Avoid Advance Fee Fraud
It used to be a frequent thing to see news stories about people who were scammed out of hundreds or thousands of dollars by online fraudsters who promised huge amounts of money. Most often called the "Nigerian banker scam", these dirty tricks affected hundreds of people every year, and undoubtedly even more went unreported due to the victims feeling ashamed that they fell for it. If you can believe it, these scams are still ongoing even today, and people are still taking the bait. Here's what I know about Nigerian banker scams - or, their proper name, "advance fee fraud".
The basic idea behind advance fee fraud is to promise a massive reward in exchange for just a small amount of money up front. Obviously, there is no reward, and the scammer cuts and runs after milking the victim. The scam is called the "Nigerian banker" scam because the most famous version of advance fee fraud is a claim that a rich man in Nigeria has died and his massive wealth is supposed to be split between the writer (scammer) and the helper (victim). The victim is supposedly needed because the scammer needs to move the money from one account to another, or some other nebulous reason. As for the "Nigerian" part being so frequent? The majority of advance fee fraud cases come from Nigeria. The country is a hotbed of crime, online and off.
So how does it work? First the scammer trawls the Internet for email addresses. Comments pages and message boards are common methods of getting emails. He then sends all of the addresses a form letter that lays out the details of how the victim can get a whole lot of money for very little work. If they reply and seem hooked, the scammer will start asking for money. For whatever reason, there are suddenly all sorts of fees that can't be paid with the huge stockpile of cash, or can't wait until after the money is free. Sometimes the scammer claims to be very poor and needs some money to stay safe. Other times the money is locked behind deposit fees or customs charges. The scammer hopes the victim will consider it an easy choice to pay a little money now to get a big pile of money later. But since there's no big pile of money, the scammer just strings the victim along until they catch on or go bankrupt. There are cases of victims borrowing from friends and selling possessions in desperation, constantly thinking that the prize is just around the corner. There are even cases of people actually flying to Nigeria to collect the money, and getting robbed or even murdered once there by the very person they were communicating with via email.
There are other, similar scams, too. Some scammers use fake websites that look like popular online stores to get people to enter their credit card numbers or passwords. Others pretend to be charities, soliciting money from generous people who think they're helping the poor when they're only lining the pockets of a crook.
Fortunately, if you have any idea what you're doing, you can easily avoid advance fee fraud. Here's a simple list of tips on what to look for.
1: Is the email from Nigeria? While not all scams are Nigerian, many are, and it's likely you wouldn't be contacted legitimately by Nigeria.
2: Is the email in ALL-CAPS, or does it use lots and lots of caps for emphasis? Professional people do not use all caps when trying to negotiate major business deals. It looks silly and is hard to read.
3: Are you being promised something for nothing, or a huge reward for very little work? If so, you're basically guaranteed to be looking at a scam.
4: If you reply to such an offer and are asked to give money or personal information, IMMEDIATELY stop contact and do not provide anything.
5: Be wary if the email throws around lots of religious phrases like "Greetings in Christ" and "May God be with you". Scammers will frequently pretend to be deeply religious to try and convince victims that they are legit. A victim may believe that someone so pious must be telling the truth. However, religion is very easily faked over the Internet. These people do not have the values they claim to. Stay away.
6: Scammers can't even send you an email if you don't post your address anywhere. A good piece of advice is to have two email accounts. Give one to only friends, and use the other whenever a website needs it. This will keep your personal address from getting any spam at all, not just scams. The other can use the Junk feature of most email services to keep suspicious mail quarantined.
7: Oh, and by the way: If somebody wants to give somebody else millions of dollars, they're not going to pick email addresses at random. That's stupid.
The basic idea behind advance fee fraud is to promise a massive reward in exchange for just a small amount of money up front. Obviously, there is no reward, and the scammer cuts and runs after milking the victim. The scam is called the "Nigerian banker" scam because the most famous version of advance fee fraud is a claim that a rich man in Nigeria has died and his massive wealth is supposed to be split between the writer (scammer) and the helper (victim). The victim is supposedly needed because the scammer needs to move the money from one account to another, or some other nebulous reason. As for the "Nigerian" part being so frequent? The majority of advance fee fraud cases come from Nigeria. The country is a hotbed of crime, online and off.
So how does it work? First the scammer trawls the Internet for email addresses. Comments pages and message boards are common methods of getting emails. He then sends all of the addresses a form letter that lays out the details of how the victim can get a whole lot of money for very little work. If they reply and seem hooked, the scammer will start asking for money. For whatever reason, there are suddenly all sorts of fees that can't be paid with the huge stockpile of cash, or can't wait until after the money is free. Sometimes the scammer claims to be very poor and needs some money to stay safe. Other times the money is locked behind deposit fees or customs charges. The scammer hopes the victim will consider it an easy choice to pay a little money now to get a big pile of money later. But since there's no big pile of money, the scammer just strings the victim along until they catch on or go bankrupt. There are cases of victims borrowing from friends and selling possessions in desperation, constantly thinking that the prize is just around the corner. There are even cases of people actually flying to Nigeria to collect the money, and getting robbed or even murdered once there by the very person they were communicating with via email.
There are other, similar scams, too. Some scammers use fake websites that look like popular online stores to get people to enter their credit card numbers or passwords. Others pretend to be charities, soliciting money from generous people who think they're helping the poor when they're only lining the pockets of a crook.
Fortunately, if you have any idea what you're doing, you can easily avoid advance fee fraud. Here's a simple list of tips on what to look for.
1: Is the email from Nigeria? While not all scams are Nigerian, many are, and it's likely you wouldn't be contacted legitimately by Nigeria.
2: Is the email in ALL-CAPS, or does it use lots and lots of caps for emphasis? Professional people do not use all caps when trying to negotiate major business deals. It looks silly and is hard to read.
3: Are you being promised something for nothing, or a huge reward for very little work? If so, you're basically guaranteed to be looking at a scam.
4: If you reply to such an offer and are asked to give money or personal information, IMMEDIATELY stop contact and do not provide anything.
5: Be wary if the email throws around lots of religious phrases like "Greetings in Christ" and "May God be with you". Scammers will frequently pretend to be deeply religious to try and convince victims that they are legit. A victim may believe that someone so pious must be telling the truth. However, religion is very easily faked over the Internet. These people do not have the values they claim to. Stay away.
6: Scammers can't even send you an email if you don't post your address anywhere. A good piece of advice is to have two email accounts. Give one to only friends, and use the other whenever a website needs it. This will keep your personal address from getting any spam at all, not just scams. The other can use the Junk feature of most email services to keep suspicious mail quarantined.
7: Oh, and by the way: If somebody wants to give somebody else millions of dollars, they're not going to pick email addresses at random. That's stupid.
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Why I Use AdBlock
My Internet browser of choice is Mozilla Firefox. This browser allows downloading of "add-ons", special applications that add new functions and features to the browser. The most popular of these is AdBlock, a program that automatically removes and disables advertising on the Internet. Even the commercials played before some YouTube videos are taken out. Thanks to this, I have seen virtually no advertisements online for about three years now. Why did I do this? I have three reasons.
The first issue is a fairly personal one: I have been resistant to advertising since childhood. Through a few stumbling blocks in my early years where a toy seen on TV turns out to be not as fun in reality, I grew hardened against advertising claims, and began to treat ads as always lying and exaggerating in order to secure my money or my parents' money. For years now I have only trusted advertising to mean one thing: "This product exists". While sometimes impressed by given statistics, I prefer to research the product first to see if their claims are true. Since ads use fine print and exaggerated hype on every topic from usefulness to effectiveness to features to pricing, I can't trust them for anything except "this product exists".
While advertising may not work on me, that seemed like all the better reason to keep it around. It helped pay for the websites I visited, and some of them need the help. So why did I turn off the ads? There were two important things that made me use AdBlock. The first reason was that advertisers were trying too hard. Much of the advertising on the internet isn’t alluring, just annoying. Pop-up windows that take up most of the screen get in the way of your content. Pop-under windows make your taskbar flash with a new window alert, and require closing. Commercials interrupt your video experience and cause more loading and buffering. Flashing animated images can hurt your eyes and distract you from the website’s text. But worst of all, my absolute least favorite type of ad, is the ad with sound. Frequently I would be browsing a page, listening to music in another window, when my experience is ruined by a voice at high volume prattling on. "Congratulations! You've won a free Macbook Air." I knew darn well that I didn’t win anything and that the "free" Macbook was probably buried under a pile of nonsense "offer forms" and paying for shipping and handling, so in addition to interrupting my browsing and drowning out my music the ad was also insulting my intelligence. These ads frequently made me consider AdBlock, but I was always hesitant to finally pull the trigger.
The last straw was the proliferation of what are essentially cybercriminals in advertising. These are the ads that cause viruses to be downloaded onto your computer. Normally, they weren’t a problem, because all I needed to do was not click the advertisement. However, when browsing one of my regular web destinations, I noticed a news post where the administrators were apologizing for an ad their advertising service provided that could cause viruses to download to a user's computer just by them loading the ad, not even clicking it. With my computer at risk, that was the final straw, and I immediately got off the site and did not return until I had downloaded and tested AdBlock.
Through harassment, unwanted pitches, loud interruptions, and cybercrime, I was left with no option but to use AdBlock, preventing any website from ever getting advertising dollars from my visits. This is what happens when an industry seems to be built on frustrating and hurting its consumer base: The smart ones tune out entirely.
The first issue is a fairly personal one: I have been resistant to advertising since childhood. Through a few stumbling blocks in my early years where a toy seen on TV turns out to be not as fun in reality, I grew hardened against advertising claims, and began to treat ads as always lying and exaggerating in order to secure my money or my parents' money. For years now I have only trusted advertising to mean one thing: "This product exists". While sometimes impressed by given statistics, I prefer to research the product first to see if their claims are true. Since ads use fine print and exaggerated hype on every topic from usefulness to effectiveness to features to pricing, I can't trust them for anything except "this product exists".
While advertising may not work on me, that seemed like all the better reason to keep it around. It helped pay for the websites I visited, and some of them need the help. So why did I turn off the ads? There were two important things that made me use AdBlock. The first reason was that advertisers were trying too hard. Much of the advertising on the internet isn’t alluring, just annoying. Pop-up windows that take up most of the screen get in the way of your content. Pop-under windows make your taskbar flash with a new window alert, and require closing. Commercials interrupt your video experience and cause more loading and buffering. Flashing animated images can hurt your eyes and distract you from the website’s text. But worst of all, my absolute least favorite type of ad, is the ad with sound. Frequently I would be browsing a page, listening to music in another window, when my experience is ruined by a voice at high volume prattling on. "Congratulations! You've won a free Macbook Air." I knew darn well that I didn’t win anything and that the "free" Macbook was probably buried under a pile of nonsense "offer forms" and paying for shipping and handling, so in addition to interrupting my browsing and drowning out my music the ad was also insulting my intelligence. These ads frequently made me consider AdBlock, but I was always hesitant to finally pull the trigger.
The last straw was the proliferation of what are essentially cybercriminals in advertising. These are the ads that cause viruses to be downloaded onto your computer. Normally, they weren’t a problem, because all I needed to do was not click the advertisement. However, when browsing one of my regular web destinations, I noticed a news post where the administrators were apologizing for an ad their advertising service provided that could cause viruses to download to a user's computer just by them loading the ad, not even clicking it. With my computer at risk, that was the final straw, and I immediately got off the site and did not return until I had downloaded and tested AdBlock.
Through harassment, unwanted pitches, loud interruptions, and cybercrime, I was left with no option but to use AdBlock, preventing any website from ever getting advertising dollars from my visits. This is what happens when an industry seems to be built on frustrating and hurting its consumer base: The smart ones tune out entirely.
Monday, February 6, 2012
Safety Warning: "This is Your Second and Final Notice" Isn't Final
You've met Tom from Home Protection and Rachel from Cardholder Services, but there are even more robocallers running around out there, fleecing people without a care in the world.
I've just received another automated message. This one is a female voice who neglects to introduce herself and instead says "This is your second and final notice" and talks about lowering monthly credit card rates. Like all the other robocallers, these people are breaking the law and you should absolutely not respond to them. They will not help you, they will scam you.
I've also noticed that despite getting this same call many times, it's always my "second and final notice". There was never a first notice, and the "final" notices will keep repeating forevermore.
So, just another important reminder: Do not EVER believe a robocall that is trying to offer a service or product. There are much safer ways to purchase goods and services than over the phone (or through email, for that matter - I suppose I'll write a post about the Nigerian banker at some point).
Here's a newspaper article about a similar robocall dealing with extending warranties on cars:
http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=861&dat=20090511&id=7nxdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=VFwNAAAAIBAJ&pg=6296,1912987
I've just received another automated message. This one is a female voice who neglects to introduce herself and instead says "This is your second and final notice" and talks about lowering monthly credit card rates. Like all the other robocallers, these people are breaking the law and you should absolutely not respond to them. They will not help you, they will scam you.
I've also noticed that despite getting this same call many times, it's always my "second and final notice". There was never a first notice, and the "final" notices will keep repeating forevermore.
So, just another important reminder: Do not EVER believe a robocall that is trying to offer a service or product. There are much safer ways to purchase goods and services than over the phone (or through email, for that matter - I suppose I'll write a post about the Nigerian banker at some point).
Here's a newspaper article about a similar robocall dealing with extending warranties on cars:
http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=861&dat=20090511&id=7nxdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=VFwNAAAAIBAJ&pg=6296,1912987
Sunday, February 5, 2012
The Chocolate Trap
Like the majority of the world, I think chocolate is delicious. It's the classic candy type, a great treat to unwind with. Chocolate bars were what I always wanted the most when trick-or-treating as a kid, and putting a bar of solid milk chocolate in my Christmas stocking is the easiest gift my mom can give. With Valentine's Day right around the corner and Easter next up on the list of major holidays, it's a good time to warn you about the presence of fake chocolate.
Yes, fake chocolate. It looks like chocolate, is packaged like chocolate, and is marketed alongside chocolate, but it is not chocolate. Whereas chocolate tastes delicious, fake chocolate tastes sort of like what chocolate would taste like if you replaced the deliciousness with revulsion. Perhaps you've fallen prey to fake chocolate. In fact I'd say it's extremely likely. Fake chocolate is cheaper than real chocolate, so bargain shoppers like me have fallen prey to it, thinking they were getting a deal.
So how can you tell if you're looking at real chocolate or fake chocolate? It's simple. Truth-in-advertising laws mean that a marketer of fake chocolate cannot call their product "chocolate" without a caveat. Look very carefully at the package. There are two ways these companies try to sneak around the rule.
The most common way is to call the candy "chocolate flavored". Most often, you'll see "CHOCOLATE" in massive letters and "flavored" shrunk down and sort of hidden. If you see this, immediately put the package back and walk away. It is unclean to you.
The second method, which is even sneakier, is using the adjective "chocolatey". Real chocolate doesn't call itself "chocolatey". It's a term used exclusively by non-chocolate wishing it was chocolate and hoping that you would kindly ignore that little letter y at the end. Do not fall for it! It's not tasty!
Here are a few examples of candy I see in various stores, and whether they pass the test.
* You have to be careful with Palmer. Despite being a fairly reputable company, Palmer deals heavily in the seedy black market of "chocolate flavored", and a lot of their cheaper stuff is fake chocolate. Stay away from the Christmas-themed North Pole Pals, which are labeled as "milky chocolatey candy". Generally, the hollow stuff is fine. If you're like me and also dislike Double Crisp, check carefully for that, too, because Palmer keeps making accursed Double Crisp rabbits despite there always being a bunch of them left over for the clearance bin when Easter ends.
* Hershey, Nestle, Reeses, and most of the other big names in the world of chocolate are safe. You'll always find real chocolate in the familiar brown-wrapper Hershey bar. Same goes for the Symphony bar, Kisses, Reeses' Cups, 3 Musketeers, and so on.
* Around Easter, you're likely to see those giant rabbit-shaped bars proudly advertised as being half a pound. They are fake chocolate and taste terrible. They have also invaded the holiday season as half-pound Santas. Do not buy them!
* At the Dollar Tree I've found a company called Landmark Confections that makes budget-priced chocolate bars bigger than the standard sizes at a buck each. While the chocolate is certainly not the highest quality, it is real chocolate and can fulfill a chocolate fix on the cheap.
* Other non-candy stuff labeled as "chocolate flavored" is generally perfectly tasty, even if it doesn't taste exactly like chocolate. Chocolate milk, chocolate cereals, and chocolate ice cream are all fine and are not the target of my hatred.
Yes, fake chocolate. It looks like chocolate, is packaged like chocolate, and is marketed alongside chocolate, but it is not chocolate. Whereas chocolate tastes delicious, fake chocolate tastes sort of like what chocolate would taste like if you replaced the deliciousness with revulsion. Perhaps you've fallen prey to fake chocolate. In fact I'd say it's extremely likely. Fake chocolate is cheaper than real chocolate, so bargain shoppers like me have fallen prey to it, thinking they were getting a deal.
So how can you tell if you're looking at real chocolate or fake chocolate? It's simple. Truth-in-advertising laws mean that a marketer of fake chocolate cannot call their product "chocolate" without a caveat. Look very carefully at the package. There are two ways these companies try to sneak around the rule.
The most common way is to call the candy "chocolate flavored". Most often, you'll see "CHOCOLATE" in massive letters and "flavored" shrunk down and sort of hidden. If you see this, immediately put the package back and walk away. It is unclean to you.
The second method, which is even sneakier, is using the adjective "chocolatey". Real chocolate doesn't call itself "chocolatey". It's a term used exclusively by non-chocolate wishing it was chocolate and hoping that you would kindly ignore that little letter y at the end. Do not fall for it! It's not tasty!
Here are a few examples of candy I see in various stores, and whether they pass the test.
* You have to be careful with Palmer. Despite being a fairly reputable company, Palmer deals heavily in the seedy black market of "chocolate flavored", and a lot of their cheaper stuff is fake chocolate. Stay away from the Christmas-themed North Pole Pals, which are labeled as "milky chocolatey candy". Generally, the hollow stuff is fine. If you're like me and also dislike Double Crisp, check carefully for that, too, because Palmer keeps making accursed Double Crisp rabbits despite there always being a bunch of them left over for the clearance bin when Easter ends.
* Hershey, Nestle, Reeses, and most of the other big names in the world of chocolate are safe. You'll always find real chocolate in the familiar brown-wrapper Hershey bar. Same goes for the Symphony bar, Kisses, Reeses' Cups, 3 Musketeers, and so on.
* Around Easter, you're likely to see those giant rabbit-shaped bars proudly advertised as being half a pound. They are fake chocolate and taste terrible. They have also invaded the holiday season as half-pound Santas. Do not buy them!
* At the Dollar Tree I've found a company called Landmark Confections that makes budget-priced chocolate bars bigger than the standard sizes at a buck each. While the chocolate is certainly not the highest quality, it is real chocolate and can fulfill a chocolate fix on the cheap.
* Other non-candy stuff labeled as "chocolate flavored" is generally perfectly tasty, even if it doesn't taste exactly like chocolate. Chocolate milk, chocolate cereals, and chocolate ice cream are all fine and are not the target of my hatred.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Safety Warning: "Rachel with Cardholder Services" is Dangerous!
You can consider this a sequel to my earlier post about "Tom with Home Protection". For a while now my home has gotten calls from "Rachel with Cardholder Services", and they are similar to Home Protection and just as crooked. I just got another call from Rachel this morning, and was inspired to Google her opening line. When I saw the results, I knew I had to post about it to keep you all informed.
Here's the scoop: Cardholder Services (which starts out by using robocalling - "Rachel" is just as fake as "Tom") claims it can lower your monthly interest rate on your credit card debt. They do this by asking for the phone number on the back of your credit card, whereupon they set up a three-way call between themselves, you, and the credit card company. Cardholder Services then asks for your rate to be lowered.
Do you see the problem?
It's very simple: anyone could do this all by themselves by simply calling the number on the back of their card without getting Cardholder Services involved. Similar to FreeCreditReport.com, Cardholder Services scams the ignorant by charging them for things they can do themselves for free. Cardholder Services will lower your rates, all right - and then you'll be charged as much as 1000 dollars for letting them do something you could've done yourself.
Like Home Protection, Cardholder Services is secretive and nearly impossible to track. And while this sort of scam may technically be legal, robocalling without the consumer's written permission is not, thanks to a law the Obama administration signed in September 2009. The company thought to be responsible, DHC Financial Services Group, was found over two years ago, but they dodged a bullet by settling and making a "promise" not to continue. Of course, they simply dissolved the company and started a new one, and Rachel continued trying to steal people's money.
Do not EVER listen to or believe a robocaller. Because of the 2009 law, all remaining robocallers randomly calling people are working illegally and their products and services cannot be trusted.
http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/17/hanging-up-on-rachel-robo-calls-have-been-banned-yet-the-phone/
Here's the scoop: Cardholder Services (which starts out by using robocalling - "Rachel" is just as fake as "Tom") claims it can lower your monthly interest rate on your credit card debt. They do this by asking for the phone number on the back of your credit card, whereupon they set up a three-way call between themselves, you, and the credit card company. Cardholder Services then asks for your rate to be lowered.
Do you see the problem?
It's very simple: anyone could do this all by themselves by simply calling the number on the back of their card without getting Cardholder Services involved. Similar to FreeCreditReport.com, Cardholder Services scams the ignorant by charging them for things they can do themselves for free. Cardholder Services will lower your rates, all right - and then you'll be charged as much as 1000 dollars for letting them do something you could've done yourself.
Like Home Protection, Cardholder Services is secretive and nearly impossible to track. And while this sort of scam may technically be legal, robocalling without the consumer's written permission is not, thanks to a law the Obama administration signed in September 2009. The company thought to be responsible, DHC Financial Services Group, was found over two years ago, but they dodged a bullet by settling and making a "promise" not to continue. Of course, they simply dissolved the company and started a new one, and Rachel continued trying to steal people's money.
Do not EVER listen to or believe a robocaller. Because of the 2009 law, all remaining robocallers randomly calling people are working illegally and their products and services cannot be trusted.
http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/17/hanging-up-on-rachel-robo-calls-have-been-banned-yet-the-phone/
Friday, January 13, 2012
Safety Warning: "Tom With Home Protection" is Dangerous!
If you ever get a phone call that begins like this:
"Hi, this is Tom with Home Protection. How are you today?"
...then you better hang up! "Home Protection" is a dangerous and illegal telemarketing group. "Tom" himself is a pre-recorded message on a computer. The computer is able to detect certain things you say and change "Tom's" responses (for instance, he'll understand you if you answer him with "Good. And you?").
I got my first call from Tom last year. After a few more, he stopped. However, I received another call from Tom last night, prompting me to look him up and see if anything had changed from last time I researched Tom. Sadly, no - he's still at it, and still hasn't been caught.
Here's the details, as I've heard them: What Home Protection likes to do is attempt to sell you a home security system. If you buy into the pitch, they'll ask for your address. If you comply, they'll send someone over to install your new home security system. Such a deal!
Here comes the scary part. All homes with Home Protection's security systems are kept track of. These homes are then targeted for robbery by Home Protection themselves. And they know they'll have a good chance at getting away with your stuff because their security systems are dummies. It's the perfect crime.
I can't confirm for certain that the burglary aspect is true. What I can confirm is that there is a company named "Home Protection" out there, aggressively pushing poor-quality or fake security alarms and cameras. If you call one of Home Protection's many numbers, You'll hear the following message: "Thanks for calling back. If you are not interested in our promotions and would like to be removed from our calling list, press 1." If you press 1, they'll know they called a number with a real person on the other end, and they'll ramp up their efforts, calling you more frequently. They are also breaking federal laws by calling mobile phones. They'll call anything - unlisted numbers, people on the Do Not Call list, anywhere and everywhere all across the country. But they're very slippery and work from a multitude of different phone numbers. They've been at this for years.
If you get a call from "Home Protection", immediately hang up. Do not talk and do not call back. You aren't ruining the day of some poor guy trying to make a living, you're cutting off the robo-caller of a pack of criminals.
Here are some people's experiences with Tom:
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-701-625-5444/10
And here is one man's crusade to take down the entire operation once and for all:
http://stoptomwithhomeprotection.wordpress.com/
"Hi, this is Tom with Home Protection. How are you today?"
...then you better hang up! "Home Protection" is a dangerous and illegal telemarketing group. "Tom" himself is a pre-recorded message on a computer. The computer is able to detect certain things you say and change "Tom's" responses (for instance, he'll understand you if you answer him with "Good. And you?").
I got my first call from Tom last year. After a few more, he stopped. However, I received another call from Tom last night, prompting me to look him up and see if anything had changed from last time I researched Tom. Sadly, no - he's still at it, and still hasn't been caught.
Here's the details, as I've heard them: What Home Protection likes to do is attempt to sell you a home security system. If you buy into the pitch, they'll ask for your address. If you comply, they'll send someone over to install your new home security system. Such a deal!
Here comes the scary part. All homes with Home Protection's security systems are kept track of. These homes are then targeted for robbery by Home Protection themselves. And they know they'll have a good chance at getting away with your stuff because their security systems are dummies. It's the perfect crime.
I can't confirm for certain that the burglary aspect is true. What I can confirm is that there is a company named "Home Protection" out there, aggressively pushing poor-quality or fake security alarms and cameras. If you call one of Home Protection's many numbers, You'll hear the following message: "Thanks for calling back. If you are not interested in our promotions and would like to be removed from our calling list, press 1." If you press 1, they'll know they called a number with a real person on the other end, and they'll ramp up their efforts, calling you more frequently. They are also breaking federal laws by calling mobile phones. They'll call anything - unlisted numbers, people on the Do Not Call list, anywhere and everywhere all across the country. But they're very slippery and work from a multitude of different phone numbers. They've been at this for years.
If you get a call from "Home Protection", immediately hang up. Do not talk and do not call back. You aren't ruining the day of some poor guy trying to make a living, you're cutting off the robo-caller of a pack of criminals.
Here are some people's experiences with Tom:
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-701-625-5444/10
And here is one man's crusade to take down the entire operation once and for all:
http://stoptomwithhomeprotection.wordpress.com/
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Keep Your Computer Safe: RelevantKnowledge
Yesterday afternoon I noticed my computer was running slowly, particularly the Internet, which had slowed to an absolute crawl. Dial-up would have been faster than the speed I was getting. The first step I like to take when it appears something is wrong with my computer is to restart it. After rebooting, I noticed that among the usual programs that appeared on startup was an Internet Explorer window labeled "RelevantKnowledge".
RelevantKnowledge presents itself as a survey, with the goal of helping to improve online shopping experiences by including the thoughts of anonymous survey-takers. In truth, however, agreeing to the survey will allow RelevantKnowledge to get its hooks into your computer. All further Internet browsing you do will go through RK's servers (which is why everything was so slow). In addition, your web history is tracked by RK, as are the details of anything you purchase online.
Fortunately, I knew that something was wrong, and instead of letting RelevantKnowledge work its magic, I quickly looked up how to get rid of it on my iPod Touch (to avoid the slow connection). It turns out that although RelevantKnowledge is difficult for virus scanners to detect, it is fairly easy to wipe out if you can find it. I was able to delete it from the Control Panel with minimal fuss. After restarting again, RelevantKnowledge was gone and my Internet speed back to normal.
How did this program get on my computer in the first place, anyway? It turns out that RK likes to come along for the ride with some free downloadable programs, even safe and trusted ones. There is a very good chance that you will run into a virus like RelevantKnowledge as you use your home computer. Just follow these simple (and no-cost) steps and your computer will be safer.
To prevent from getting viruses in the first place:
-Make sure Windows Defender is on by checking your Control Panel.
-Do not click on suspicious advertisements or check "I Agree" to programs you don't trust.
-Use Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome to browse the Internet.
-If you have Firefox or Chrome, download the AdBlock addon. This feature disables most advertisements, allowing for safer and less obtrusive browsing.
-If a website, download, or program name looks suspicious or shady, do some research on your favorite search engine and find out more about the questionable item.
-Be very careful on Facebook - this website's very high popularity makes it a great place for hackers to spread their infections. Do not believe claims of things like a "downloadable Dislike button".
-You must be extremely cautious when dealing with websites that require personal information, especially things like your Social Security Number. Don't give away your credit card numbers either unless you are absolutely certain you're on a secure website such as Amazon.
To stop a virus that has already gotten onto your computer:
-If there is another Internet-capable machine in your house (another computer, an iPhone, a 3DS, etc), use that machine to look up instructions to help your computer.
-Try deleting the offending program from the Control Panel or by just browsing through your program list. Most viruses are too smart for this to work, however.
-Restart your computer in Safe Mode. The method of turning on Safe Mode may vary depending on your operating system. In Vista, for example, you access Safe Mode by repeatedly pressing F8 right after turning your computer on, then selecting "Safe Mode" from the list of options. Check and see if the virus is still being an issue in Safe Mode.
-Within Safe Mode, you can do a System Restore. System Restore is one of the easiest and best ways to stop a virus or other significant issue. It basically resets your computer to a time several days earlier - hopefully a time when there was no virus.
-If nothing is working and the Internet cannot provide any further assistance, you may need to take your computer to a professional or even buy a new computer entirely.
http://www.spywareremove.com/removerelevantknowledge.html
http://bertk.mvps.org/html/safemodevista.html
RelevantKnowledge presents itself as a survey, with the goal of helping to improve online shopping experiences by including the thoughts of anonymous survey-takers. In truth, however, agreeing to the survey will allow RelevantKnowledge to get its hooks into your computer. All further Internet browsing you do will go through RK's servers (which is why everything was so slow). In addition, your web history is tracked by RK, as are the details of anything you purchase online.
Fortunately, I knew that something was wrong, and instead of letting RelevantKnowledge work its magic, I quickly looked up how to get rid of it on my iPod Touch (to avoid the slow connection). It turns out that although RelevantKnowledge is difficult for virus scanners to detect, it is fairly easy to wipe out if you can find it. I was able to delete it from the Control Panel with minimal fuss. After restarting again, RelevantKnowledge was gone and my Internet speed back to normal.
How did this program get on my computer in the first place, anyway? It turns out that RK likes to come along for the ride with some free downloadable programs, even safe and trusted ones. There is a very good chance that you will run into a virus like RelevantKnowledge as you use your home computer. Just follow these simple (and no-cost) steps and your computer will be safer.
To prevent from getting viruses in the first place:
-Make sure Windows Defender is on by checking your Control Panel.
-Do not click on suspicious advertisements or check "I Agree" to programs you don't trust.
-Use Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome to browse the Internet.
-If you have Firefox or Chrome, download the AdBlock addon. This feature disables most advertisements, allowing for safer and less obtrusive browsing.
-If a website, download, or program name looks suspicious or shady, do some research on your favorite search engine and find out more about the questionable item.
-Be very careful on Facebook - this website's very high popularity makes it a great place for hackers to spread their infections. Do not believe claims of things like a "downloadable Dislike button".
-You must be extremely cautious when dealing with websites that require personal information, especially things like your Social Security Number. Don't give away your credit card numbers either unless you are absolutely certain you're on a secure website such as Amazon.
To stop a virus that has already gotten onto your computer:
-If there is another Internet-capable machine in your house (another computer, an iPhone, a 3DS, etc), use that machine to look up instructions to help your computer.
-Try deleting the offending program from the Control Panel or by just browsing through your program list. Most viruses are too smart for this to work, however.
-Restart your computer in Safe Mode. The method of turning on Safe Mode may vary depending on your operating system. In Vista, for example, you access Safe Mode by repeatedly pressing F8 right after turning your computer on, then selecting "Safe Mode" from the list of options. Check and see if the virus is still being an issue in Safe Mode.
-Within Safe Mode, you can do a System Restore. System Restore is one of the easiest and best ways to stop a virus or other significant issue. It basically resets your computer to a time several days earlier - hopefully a time when there was no virus.
-If nothing is working and the Internet cannot provide any further assistance, you may need to take your computer to a professional or even buy a new computer entirely.
http://www.spywareremove.com/removerelevantknowledge.html
http://bertk.mvps.org/html/safemodevista.html
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)