Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) is alerting customers to be aware of a scam that has impacted other utility customers in several states across the country.

The scam claims that President Barack Obama is providing credits or applying payments to utility bills. In some cases, scammers have asked for social security numbers in order to allow for credits or to apply payments to customers’ utility bills, presenting an identity-theft risk. According to reports, scammers have visited customers in person, posted fliers and used social media and texting to send messages claiming that President Obama will provide a credit or directly pay utility bills.

SoCalGas wants to assure customers that SoCalGas employees carry proper identification when called out to any job. The company also does not randomly call or text customers asking for social security or other information. Customers should verify the employee’s proper uniform and identification before letting anyone in the home or on their property. Customer safety is a top priority for SoCalGas and employees will always be happy to wait while the customer confirms their identity.

Here are some tips to help customers identify SoCalGas employees:

• Be vigilant and question anyone who presents themselves as a representative of the utility.

• SoCalGas workers who perform in-home appliance services, work on gas meters or work on gas pipelines wear uniforms. However, some other employees do not. Always ask for identification before allowing anyone inside the home or on the property.

• The majority of authorized SoCalGas employees will be in uniform with company logo and carry an official employee badge. Most field employees also drive a company vehicle.

• Most of the time a SoCalGas employee visits a home or business in response to a service request. If no one scheduled an appointment, call SoCalGas before allowing anyone inside the home or property

• Never leave the house unlocked and unattended. SoCalGas does not ask customers to leave their homes unattended.

• To verify the authenticity of anyone claiming to be a representative of SoCalGas, customers are encouraged to ask for proper identification or call the utility at 1-800-427-2200 (or 1-800-342-4545 in Spanish). SoCalGas customer service representatives are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

• Visit socalgas.com/safety for more information on staying safe.

The public is being tricked by jail inmates and others through a phone scam.

This fraud has occurred off and on for many years in different parts of the country. This notice has been shared with the public by the LASD and the news media many times over the past few years. Each time it is shared, it results in a major decrease in victims and potential victims contacting the LASD. There has again been an increase in reports of this scam and we are asking you to forward this to your family, friends and colleagues to help them avoid it.

The explanation follows, but the most important thing to know is that you should not call any phone number starting with *72 unless you want to forward all your calls to that phone number.

Members of the public have been calling the Sheriff’s Department and asking to talk to a specific deputy, detective, or sergeant who had just called them. The real deputy who answers the phone explains they are mistaken, as the named deputy does not exist or is not on duty.

The scam begins by the victim caller receiving a call from a person claiming to be a deputy. This imposter tells the victim that one of their family member’s has been incarcerated or involved in an accident. The imposter then informs the victim caller that their family member provided the victim caller’s name as an emergency contact.

The victim caller is then instructed to call a number that begins with *72 (Example: *72-323-555-1212) to get the information they will need. When the victim caller hangs up and dials the number provided, they are told they have a wrong number.

Concerned for the safety of their family member, the victim caller usually then calls an information line (4-1-1) and asks for a number to the Sheriff’s Department. They are then connected with a real deputy.

However, since the victim caller used the prefix *72 to initiate their last phone call, they have just automatically forwarded all their incoming calls to the scammer’s phone number (These include collect calls from inmates who want to avoid paying for collect calls). The billing for these forwarded calls goes to the victim caller until they turn off call forwarding on their phone (usually by dialing *73).

If not careful, Victims can be scammed out of a lot of money in collect-call fees before they find this out.

Do Not Dial *72 unless you want to forward your calls.

If you have been involved in this scam, and you have already dialed a number beginning with *72, contact your phone service provider to learn how to shut off automatic call forwarding.

For more information regarding this scam, please click here for further details, recommendations and recourse.

Did you know that in 2012, retail stores -including grocery stores- will no longer offer plastic bags? You’ll need to bring your own bags, or pay $0.10 per paper bag. If you have small children, did you know that unless they are at least 4’9″ or 8 years old, they still need to be in a booster seat or car seat? And have you ever quickly eaten your breakfast or put on make-up while driving to work? It’s not an official law, but you can get fined for that.

These are just a few examples of the new laws for Californians in 2012. Please check out this link for a more comprehensive list of all of the new laws for 2012 that may or may not apply to you. But you may know someone who may be affected, so I recommend you read it.

Remember to share this post with your friends and family so they are aware!

Today’s warning is part of a “Multi-National Day of Action” in conjunction with various other federal agencies and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.  It is estimated that these fraud schemes cost consumers billions of dollars per year in the U.S. and other countries.

What is a Mass-Marketing Scam?
According to the FBI, mass-marketing fraud includes fraud schemes that use one or more mass communication technique or technology, such as the Internet, telephones, the mail or in-person meetings, to present fraudulent solicitations to a number of prospective victims, to conduct fraudulent transactions with victims or to transmit proceeds of the fraud to financial institutions or others connected with the scheme.

The following are just some of the fraudulent scams happening now:

Foreign Lotteries and Sweepstakes
Victims are told that they have won a lottery or sweepstakes in a foreign drawing, but must pay various taxes and fees in order to collect the winnings. The checks appear, on the surface, to be authentic. In some cases, it may take the bank several days to determine that a check is fraudulent.

Money Transfer Scams
Victims are asked to help illegally transfer funds out of Nigeria or other countries in return for a share of the money. Victims are asked to provide their financial institution account information or pay money up front to complete the transaction.

Credit and Loan Scams
Victims with poor or nonexistent credit are offered credit cards, loans or credit improvement services for an advance fee.

Mystery Shopper Scams
Victims receive a letter in the mail advising them that they have been selected to work as a “mystery shopper.” Enclosed in the letter is a check. Victims are instructed to deposit the check and to use the funds to evaluate money transfer services. Financial institutions subsequently determine that checks are counterfeit and victims are responsible for the funds spent.

Overpayment Scams
Victims who advertise an item for sale are sent a counterfeit check or money order from a “buyer” for more than the cost of the item, then are held responsible by their financial institution when the payment is discovered to be counterfeit.

Other scams involve false charities, counterfeit checks, and “relative in distress” scams in which a con artist convinces a victim that a relative needs money to be wired to another part of the country.

The FBI warns people to be wary of offers that sound too good to be true; never provide personal information over the phone, especially social security numbers; and never deposit checks sent by companies whose representatives claim the check is being sent to pay fees or taxes on lottery winnings. Also, banks and credit unions will never contact you and ask for personal information such as your account or social security number. If this happens, contact your financial institution immediately to make them aware that this is happening.

Please share this information with all of your loved ones – especially the elderly.  The more we are educated about this, the less successful these scam artists will be.

People who believe they are victims of fraud should contact the Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov. Victims of mass-marketing fraud may also contact the Federal Trade Commission at 1-877-987-3728, or at www.ftc.gov. You can also get information about Identity Theft and more here.

Questions or Comments? E-mail me at blogger@matadorsmoneymatters.com.

The credit union says the rogue Android application “creates a shell of mobile banking apps that tries to gain access to a consumer’s financial information.”

The malware, developed by “Droid09,” has been removed from the market but the safest best for those that have downloaded it is to remove it from your phone and take it to your mobile provider to ensure it’s completely removed.

Questions or comments? E-mail me at blogger@matadorsmoneymatters.com.

Do not text them or call them back! This is  a scam. Think about it, does your Visa Credit Card Carrier have your cell phone number? Are you signed up to get text alerts? If you answered no, don’t call. 

Please let everyone you can know about this. They will ask you for your credit card number, and probably your social security number. This is a complete phishing scam.

The new “scam du jour” is this: American Indian tribes are now in the business of doing online payday lending. They say that because they operate on a reservation, they don’t need to abide by U.S. laws. That being said, they are charging exhorbitant interest rates (as much as 1000%!) for unsuspecting consumers to borrow their own money!

If you read this previous post, you will know that I’m not a fan of predatory lenders. I’m especially not a fan of predatory lenders who are not government regulated!

So please, forward this information to everyone you know and don’t let them be taken advantage of. If you are in need of emergency funds, there are better, regulated ways to get money.

Questions or Comments? E-mail me at blogger@matadorsmoneymatters.com.

I urge you – don’t respond or enlist their services! You don’t have to pay a fee!

According to the Los Angeles County Office of the Assessor:

These companies may charge hundreds of dollars to file for a reduction in value on behalf of the property owner. Some companies are even imposing late fees if the application is received after an arbitrary deadline. Be aware that solicitations from private companies offering to pursue a reduction in property taxes must clearly indicate that they are NOT a government agency and that their services are NOT approved or endorsed by any government agency. Failure to provide such notice is a violation of California law.

If you purchased your single-family home or condo between July 2003 and June 2008, your home may be included in a free review by the County Assessor’s office. In some areas, homes purchased before July 2003 may also be looked at. To see if your home is part of the review, check this website after April 1st.

If your home was reviewed, you will receive a letter by the end of June notifying you of the results. If you do not agree with the results, or were not included in the review, you may file an application through December 31, 2009.

So don’t fall prey to these scam artists. Let your local County Assessor’s office do the work and save you money!

Questions or comments? E-mail me at blogger@matadorsmoneymatters.com.

What is skimming? Skimming is the theft of credit card information. It is typically an “inside job” by a dishonest employee of a legitimate merchant, usually a restaurant or bar, where the employee actually walks away with your card. The thief can get a victim’s credit card number by photocopying receipts or using a small electronic device (skimmer) to swipe and store hundreds of victim’s credit card numbers. The thief may also use a small keypad to unobtrusively transcribe the 3 or 4 digit Card Security Code which is not present on the magnetic strip.

What can you do to protect yourself? Sometimes it is truly out of your hands – the thieves are tricky and as you read above, can capture your credit card information without your knowledge. But there are steps you can take to protect yourself and if you are a victim of fraud, to nip it in the bud:

• Pay with cash when you can. If you are unsure about restaurants, bring enough cash so you won’t have to use plastic.
• Get online banking. With online banking, you can check your credit card account (depending on the services offered by your financial institution) as often as you like. Check it weekly for any charges not incurred by you.
• Check your credit card statement. If you’re like most people, when you receive your credit card statement in the mail, you toss it aside, or throw it into your “taxes” pile. Make sure you open it up and check it for any unauthorized charges.
• Keep your cards in a safe place. Do you know where all of your credit cards are? Make sure you keep them safe in a location that you will remember, if it isn’t your wallet. And always check to make sure they are still where you left them!

What about Debit Cards? Yes, debit cards can be compromised as well. Take the same precautions that you would with your credit card.

Most financial institutions and credit card companies now have fraud detec tion services. If there is a transaction on your account that is out of the ordinary, they will most likely call you to verify that it was, in fact, you that made the transaction.

If you discover that there was fraud on your account, notify your financial institution immediately. They can deactivate the card so it can’t be used anymore, and issue you a new card. They can also get the fraud recovery process started for you.

Share these tips with your friends and families. Don’t let these thieves win! Protect yourself, and your plastic, and have a safe, healthy, and happy 2009!

Questions or Comments? E-mail me at blogger@matadorsmoneymatter.com.

Get information on MCCU’s Credit Cards!

According to About.com: Urban Legends, the “facts” circulating in these e-mails aren’t completely true.

While it’s true that many U.S. companies are feeling the effects of the economic downturn and some will no doubt close locations and/or file for bankruptcy in the coming months, most of the store closures listed above had either already taken place or were planned well before the 2008 financial crisis occurred.

Which means that in all but a few cases, fears that gift cards issued by these companies may suddenly become worthless are unwarranted or premature.

That having been said, financial experts do warn that it’s risky in general to put off redeeming gift cards in such volatile economic times.

They go on to give a lengthy list of stores detailed in the mass e-mail, and the “truth” about store closings, etc. For example, the e-mail states that Talbots – a popular women’s clothing store – is closing down all stores. In fact, Talbot’s closed approximately 100 stores in 2008 but is still in business and has no more store closings planned.

The e-mail also indicates that Lowe’s – the home improvement store – would close stores. In actuality, they have scaled back store openings but have not announced plans to close locations.

Store that are closing up shop for good, if they haven’t already,, and, of course, are not accepting gift cards, are Sharper Image, Levitz Furniture, Wickes Furniture, Linen’s ‘n Things, Circuit City (not closed yet, but closed 155 stores and filed for bankruptcy in November), and The Bombay Co.

That being said, if you are the owner of a gift card for one of the stores no longer in business, unfortunately that card is no good. However, if you have a gift card, or want to purchase a gift card, from one of the other companies mentioned who are still in business but have closed stores, they should still be valid (check expiration dates, if any, and all terms and conditions as they may vary).

You do have a very good option, however! If you like purchasing gift cards for holiday gifts like I do (hey, let the recipient buy what they want!), but don’t want to worry about the store going out of business and closing, I have a solution. Purchase a Visa Gift Card from MCCU! Your recipient can spend it anywhere they want! There is an 18-month expiration from the date your recipient activates the card, but that should be plenty of time for them to make a purchase. There is also a minimal fee for the card, but remember, you, and your recipient, won’t have to worry about the card not being honored. That’s worth a few bucks, right?

Questions or Comments? E-mail me at blogger@matadorsmoneymatters.com.