November 2008 Archives

Even after recently running our Scambusters article about the latest Nigerian-type scams, we were amazed this week to come across yet two more heart-breaking stories in which victims lost a small fortune, $400,000 in one case -- and probably a good deal of their dignity and self-esteem.

The villains will stop at nothing and just keep asking for more and more money, as the first two stories in our round-up of the latest scam headlines show.

We also have the lowdown on a cheap drugs scam that delivers a double blow to victims and new outbreaks of familiar frauds -- the economic stimulus check and the auto warranty tricks.

And if you've received a tempting offer of cut-price tickets for January's Presidential inaugural bash, we've got news for you -- they're free. If you can get them.

In desperate times, people do desperate things. And that makes them sitting ducks for fraudsters, as this week's top story from the scam headlines shows. Investors are duped into losing up to $2 billion in schemes promising huge returns.

We also show how scammers use the names of official organizations and legitimate firms to fool people into downloading malware or part with confidential information.

Plus, we've news of a bogus flight-booking email, a scam that hits fast food company Wendy's and the strange story of the winners who turn down their prizes.

It's been a good news / bad news kind of week in the world of Internet crime. First, the good news: A huge, online forum trading in stolen passwords and other information is shut down by the FBI.

But the bad news: In separate studies, researchers show how easy it is to turn a computer into a "zombie" and how feasible it is to capture key strokes using simple electronic eavesdropping equipment.

Also in this week's round-up of the scam headlines, we warn of a conman who travels the US telling tall stories, a highly organized checks scam and a phishing expedition that hauled in a super-catch.