5 largest scams per mail right now - and how to stay safe

False notifications for delivery of packages to theft of personal information, here is what to look for.


Even if we could use it differently daily that we did it a decade ago, we are still quite dependent on the American postal service (USPS). From Sending packages To receive important official documents, the agency plays an essential role in daily life. Unfortunately, crooks can exploit this dependence on execution regimes targeting vulnerable victims. Read the rest for the biggest scams by mail at the moment, you should know.

In relation: The USPS postal inspector reveals how to send checks to avoid flight .

1
"Brush" scams

package on porch
Wnstock / Shutterstock

Receiving a set of unexpected care of a loved one is undoubtedly one of the best surprises that can come from the USPS. But if a box appears at your front door with No explanation of who he comes Or where it comes from, you could be taken in a "brushing" scam.

According to the US Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), these packages are filled with items that the recipient has never ordered. They generally do not include any return address or information on the sender, which may be a retailer. But although it is easy to blame this on a logistical error, these packages are generally sent from an international third party which could find your address online for the purposes of Obtain verified buyer status .

"With this approval cachet, my boy, they can do a lot," Bao Vang , Vice-president of communications at the Better Business Bureau (BBB) of Minnesota and Dakota from the North, told CBS News. "They can go online and publish positive reviews on your behalf, and if these comments are starting to add up, they can manipulate and distort a scheme and revision system to win more customers."

Unfortunately, this is the type of scam which means that your personal information can also be used in another ploy. The USPI suggests notifying any detailers involved in the problem and closely monitoring your credit card activity as a result of unexpected boxes.

In relation: The FBI issues a new warning on the latest scams designed to "steal your money".

2
Scam

A young woman looking at her phone with a confused look on her face after receiving a text message
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Tons of text messages that we receive one day given can be a lot to stay informed of what is. However, you may be a victim of a mail scam if you are not careful.

In this situation, a victim receives an SMS pretending to be a request for a USPS monitoring request or a notification of attempted package delivery. These "smirs" messages —Nume for the use of the SMS text - Also include a link that could be used to steal your personal information as part of an "address confirmation" or your financial information when requesting a small payment for shipping charges.

And the text should not necessarily be USPS . "It is all the carriers in fact because what the crooks do is that they try to go wrong by thinking of your waiting package, where your package is delayed, by clicking on the link and abandoning the personal informations", " Mélanie McGovern A spokesperson for BBB told the Los Angeles ABC Kabc-TV subsidiary.

The USPIS warns that if the USPS offers text delivery monitoring, it will never include a link in any of its messages. They warn you never click on any URL that you might receive and do not respond to the message, and rather report it to the authorities and companies that could be involved in the scam.

In relation: If you receive a telephone call from one of these 12 numbers, it is a scam .

3
E-mail scams

Person scrolling through their email inbox
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E-mail scams exist almost as long as technology existed. But even if we can all know better than trusting these messages claiming to be a foreign prince trying to share their massive fortune, the crooks have become creative using traditional mail as a means of winning your confidence.

Similar to the functioning of the SMIMS scam, the planned targets of these email scams generally receive a Message in their reception box Warning that a failed delivery attempt has been made or small payment is necessary, according to USPIS. They are then linked to a website to steal your personal information, your passwords, or financial information .

"The details vary, but the crooks are after the same thing: your money and your personal information," said Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in a recent alert. "If you click on these links and submit information from your card, you will end up with nothing, but you will find unauthorized costs published on your account."

As always, you can generally spot these emails to use a bad grammar, the spelling of errors and create a feeling of emergency. Anyone who receives messages like this should send them to the USPIS before deleting them.

In relation: 5 texts that are always scams, warn the experts .

4
Identity theft

person putting a letter in the mailbox
Andrey_popov / Shutterstock

Recently, large data violations have become so common that it can give the impression that digital identity theft is almost an inevitable life. However, there are still crooks use of traditional mail to Fly your information . AE0FCC31AE342FD3A1346EBB1F342FCB

Unlike other USPS scams, it involves not Receive a letter intended for you. Crooks will rather steal a piece of incoming or outgoing mail which can give them access to your sensitive personal and financial information, which they can then use to commit fraud and an identity theft.

To avoid this, the USPI suggests depositing all the envelopes with important documents in blue collection boxes as close to their planning time planned as possible - or to send them ideally from a job location. It is also preferable to monitor your credit report and your credit card activity so that you can take everything that is suspect as quickly as possible.

5
Spam

stack of junk mail
Anke Van Wyk / Shutterstock

Similar to its digital counterpart, the vast majority of unwanted mail is one of the minor troubles that accompany the use of the postal service. But criminals are still known to use letters to execute their own scams that could end up being expensive.

Like many other texts or scams by phone, spams of spam often arrive under the guise of winning a Grand Prix in cash, a lottery, a competition or other competition , according to the Office of the Attorney General in California. Many say that gains will only become available once the victims planned will pay a low amount, but will then take money and run.

Unfortunately, the scale of some of these types of scams shows How dangerous they can be . Recently, a man from Las Vegas was sentenced to 51 years in prison for "having stolen millions of dollars to thousands of elderly victims" in a ploy which took place from 2010 to 2018, KVVU reported, affiliated with FOX KVVU.

The authorities suggest ignoring all the letters that seem too beautiful to be true and to report any story.

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