Watchdog warns of on-line fraud
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The National Consumers League in the United States, claiming its Internet fraud reports tripled in the last year, yesterday unveiled new Web pages to arm consumers against cybercrooks and warned them of the 10 most-used scams.
Susan Grant, the league's Internet Fraud Watch director, said yesterday that nearly 900 complaints have been received so far this year, compared to 389 for all of 1996. They range in size from $10 to $10,000 (pounds 6.30- pounds 6,300)."Cybercrooks are in your pocketbooks with a click of the mouse," the league's president, Linda Golodny, said."It's like a giant yard sale in cyberspace ... consumers purchase a variety of items that are advertised online, but they don't always get what they bargained for." The league officials said the most common signs of fraud are extravagant promises of profits, guarantees of credit regardless of bad credit history, suspiciously low prices or prizes that require up-front payments.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments