How to Avoid Internet Fraud

The growth of home computers means that many people are able to enjoy the convenience of shopping and investing online. Unfortunately, it also means that con artists and identity thieves have another way to weasel into your bank account. This doesn't mean you have to shut down your computer - you can still shop and bank online safely if you know what to watch out for. The Federal Trade Commission and the FBI offer these tips:

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

1. Watch out for auction fraud. If you bid in an online auction, be sure you know how the process works, what your obligations are as a buyer, and what the seller's obligations are. Find out what recourse you have if you encounter problems with the sale. Never give your social security or driver's license number to a seller.
2. Guard your credit card. Don't give out your credit card information online unless you know you're dealing with a reputable and secure site. If you're not familiar with the company, check with the Better Business Bureau where the business is located.
3. Beware of unsolicited investment advice. If you get an email with a "hot stock tip", delete it. It's not hard for a con artist to set up a phony website, send out a flurry of emails soliciting investment in a supposedly hot stock, and then disappear a few days later.
4. Don't be tempted by the Nigerian letter scam. One of the top Internet scams continues to be an email that is supposedly from a third-world official. In the email, the person offers to share his family's fortune if you'll help him set up a bank account in the U.S. You're asked to make a good-faith deposit in the account -- which promptly vanishes.
5. Don't give out confidential information via email. According to the FTC, a common method for identity theft is to email a user and ask him or her to confirm confidential financial information, either by return email or by going to a supposedly legitimate website and updating records there. Often, the website will look almost identical to that of a legitimate company. Even if you receive an email that appears to be from a bank or other company you normally deal with, call first to find out if the email really came from them.

Tips & Warnings

• To report fraud call one of the following: the National Fraud Information Center Hotline at 800-876-7060; Project Know Fraud's Hotine at 877-987-3728; the Federal Trade Commission at 877-FTC-HELP.