The iPod is dead, but the podcast lives on The Verge Speak for yourself. I have an iPod that I use. And so old no GPS!
Oakland: Woman gets nearly 7 years for stolen identity refund fraud; got $900,0000
Three Germans arrested in Spain for running a banking system for criminals; hundreds of millions of Euros handled
Need an expert witness for consumer protection or fraud issues? Let me know.
BBB Studies. Here are links to the studies I’ve written for the Better Business Bureau: puppy fraud, romance fraud; BEC fraud, sweepstakes/lottery fraud, tech support fraud, romance fraud money mules, crooked movers, government imposters, online vehicle sale scams, rental fraud, gift cards, job scams, online shopping fraud, and crypto scams
Fraud News Around the world
- BBC: Hundreds of scam websites raising money and claiming to help Ukraine
- Ireland: Man who headed gang that “sold” nonexistent phone and classic cars gets 18 months prison; six money mules in scheme also get sentenced
- UK arrests three Nigerians wanted in the US for inheritance scams; others arrested in Spain
- UK Action Fraud warns of fake McAfee emails claiming to renew subscriptions
- How to protect against Zelle scams
- Brother and sister take in $6 million from down payments on homes that weren’t for sale
- San Diego: Third defendant pleads guilty to RICO charges over grandparent fraud
- Florida: Three men get prison for ID theft to steal credit cards; affected tens of thousands of people
- Wisconsin: Man arrested for grandparent scam; got $50,000 from one victim
- Trust Pilot removes 2.7 million fake reviews
- Texas: Man gets five years prison for buying PayPal log in information from dark web; got 38,000 accounts
Humor
- Texas Judge who handles DWI's accused -- of DWI
- California man charged with opening doors and walking on wings as jet taxis
- Man tries to rob a bank from the back of a Taxi
FTC and CFPB
- FTC settles with Kohl’s and WalMart over claims for bamboo textiles
- FTC settles with Frontier over claims of high speed internet
- FTC returns $149 million to victims of AdvoCare pyramid scheme; claimed to be multilevel marketing operation
- FTC sues Florida-based credit repair company
- DOJ files FTC settlement with Florida VoIP company over aiding foreign robocalls about air duct cleaning into the US phone system; to pay $3.2 million penalty
- US Senate attempt to restore FTC’s 13b authority likely to fail; Senate issues 80 page report on that law
- CFPB gets final order requiring owners of debt relief scam to pay more than $11 million
- Senate confirms Bedoya as third FTC Commissoner, giving Dems majority
Virus Benefit Theft
- UK sues for return of money for Covid small business loans from two men from Russia and Lithuania; seek £70 million back; both recently sentenced to prison for money laundering
- Ohio: Two Florida men get prison for PPP fraud; ordered to pay restitution
- New Jersey: Former letter carrier pleads guilty to unemployment benefit fraud; stole payment cards from the mail
- New York: Two women from Texas and Maryland arrested for PPP fraud
- Pennsylvania: Man gets 18 months prison for PPP fraud; got $300,000
- Sacramento: Man pleads guilty to PPP fraud, unemployment scam on Maine, and another scam; got $920,000 from PPP
- St Louis: Woman charged with PPP fraud; got $20,000
Business Email compromise fraud
Ransomware
Bitcoin and cryptocurrency
- SEC doubles staff handling crypto issues
- Florida: SEC gets injunction against crypto mining venture that got more than $10 million
- Florida: CEO of that venture indicted
- Crypto hackers got $370 million in April alone
- US sanctions North Korea-based crypto laundromat
IRS and tax frauds
ATM skimming
Jamaica and Lottery Fraud
- Miami: Jamaican extradited from Montego Bay to face charges of lottery fraud
- South Carolina: Four Jamaicans sentenced to years in prison for lottery scams; got $300,000, kept 25%, sent the rest to Jamaica