BBB Scam Alert: Baby formula shortage leads to potential scams By Better Business Bureau. May 12, 2022.

Shortages in the supply of baby formula are leading new moms to find other ways of finding the much-needed item - and risking themselves to potential online scams. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced it is taking proactive measures to increase supply to help ease the shortage. 

According to the 2021 BBB Scam Tracker Risk Report, online shopping scams are the riskiest. With the current supply issues on many items, including formula, scammers are watching. 

How it works 

An ad, post, or social media group posts they have baby formula available. The buyer contacts the seller via chat or direct message, showing photos of the cans available. The buyer makes a payment through a peer-to-peer platform such as PayPal (a BBB Accredited Business) or Venmo (a BBB Accredited Business), but the formula never arrives.  

Signs of a potential online purchase scam include: 

• Positive reviews on the website that have been copied from honest sites or created by scammers. Be aware, some review websites claim to be independent but are funded by scammers. Check BBB.org.
  
  
• No indication of a brick-and-mortar address or the address shows on a Google map as a parking lot, residence, or unrelated business than what is listed on the website.
  
  
• Misspellings, grammatical errors, or other descriptive language that is inconsistent with the product. 
• The seller advertises on a social media site and is communicative until the payment is made. Once the payment clears, they are unreachable.

Check out the website before making a purchase:  

• Visit  BBB.org  to check a business’s rating and BBB accreditation status. Impostors have been known to copy the BBB seal. If it is real, clicking on the seal will lead to the company’s BBB profile on BBB.org - check the domain of the URL.
  
  
• Conduct an internet search with the company name and the word “scam.” This may locate other complaints about the site.  
• Make a note of the website where the order is placed. Take a screenshot of the item ordered, in case the website disappears, or a different item is received in the mail than what was advertised.  
• Credit cards often provide more protection against fraud than other payment methods.  
• Think before you click. Be especially cautious about email solicitations and online ads on social media sites. 

Report suspected online shopping fraud to:  

• Better Business Bureau - file a complaint at BBB.org or report a scam at BBB.org/scamtracker. 
• Federal Trade Commission (FTC) - file a complaint at reportfraud.ftc.gov or call 877-FTC-Help.  
• National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center - report intellectual property and counterfeiting violations to iprcenter.gov/referral/view.  
• Internet Crime Complaint enter (IC3) - file a complaint at ic3.gov/complaint.  
• Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre - file a report at antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca or call 1-888-495-8501.  
• Facebook – report ads that violate Facebooks policies by clicking the *** next to an ad to go to facebook.com/business/help.  
• Instagram - report copyright infringement or other policy violations at help.instagram.com.  
• Amazon – report suspicious activities and webpages at Amazon.com.  
• Google – report scams at Google.com.  
• PayPal - call (888) 221-1161 to speak with a live person instead of using an automated system if you receive an item that is not as advertised.  
• Credit card company - Call the phone number on the back of the credit card to report the fraud and request a refund.  

For more information

• See BBB's online shopping resource page.
• Read more tips for shopping online.
• Visit our consumer HQ

 March 22, 2022

FBI Phoenix

Brooke Brennan and Kevin Smith

FBI Tech Tuesday: World Events and Malicious Cyber Activity

PHOENIX, AZ—For this month’s Tech Tuesday, the FBI Phoenix Field Office wants to underscore the importance for private sector businesses and citizens to remain vigilant and be on the lookout for possible increases in malicious cyber activity.

The FBI, along with our federal partners, remains committed to investigating and combating any malicious cyber activity targeting the United States. The FBI has consistently disseminated public threat advisories warning about these activities conducted by Russian cyber actors. We continue to share information proactively with our private sector partners to identify targeting and prevent incidents. We encourage the public to report any suspicious cyber activity to www.ic3.gov.

Because the vast majority of the Internet’s infrastructure is in private hands, companies and the public are critical partners in disrupting cyber threats.

For the Public—Implement cybersecurity best practices including using strong passwords, multifactor authentication, patching, and updating software. We urge people to call us if they see something suspicious or experience issues and problems.

For the Private Sector—Among suggested actions for safety and security, company leaders are encouraged to ask cyber network defenders to review recent Cybersecurity Advisories (CSA) and continually review the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s (CISA) alerts at https://www.cisa.gov/uscert/ncas/alerts. Know if your company has any connectivity in Russia and surrounding territories. Exercise cybersecurity incident response plans, and, if compromised, the FBI encourages reporting information promptly to the local FBI field office.

Rewards for Justice program—If anyone has information on state-sponsored Russian cyber operations targeting U.S. critical infrastructure, you are asked to contact the Department of State’s Rewards for Justice program. People may be eligible for a reward of up to $10 million, which the State Department is offering for information leading to the identification or location of any person who, while acting under the direction or control of a foreign government, participates in malicious cyber activity against U.S. critical infrastructure in violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA). Contact (202) 702-7843, on WhatsApp, Signal, or Telegram, or send information via the Rewards for Justice secure Tor-based tips line located on the Dark Web. For more details, refer to rewardsforjustice.net.

 

AG Nessel Issues Video Outlining Potential Punishments for Making School Threats

Agency: Attorney General

Media contact: Lynsey Mukomel 517-599-2746
Public inquiries: 517-335-7622

January 4, 2022

LANSING - Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel issued a new video today that highlights the seriousness of making threats against schools. The Michigan Department of Education will be sharing the video with districts for additional awareness and distribution. 

"In recent weeks, threats of violence have been reported at schools across Michigan," Nessel says in the video. "Local law enforcement agencies have reported threats on social media that number in the hundreds within their own communities. As a result, kids in our state have missed valuable days of instruction as school administrators are forced to close buildings to keep kids safe. Whether these are real threats made by that intent on doing harm or pranks made by kids trying to get a day off, they are real crimes with real consequences." 

In the video, Nessel explains the potential charges one could face if they make a threat of violence, which include: 

• communicating a threat of terrorism, 20-year felony; 
• calling in a bomb threat, a four-year felony; 
• malicious use of a telecommunications device, a six-month misdemeanor; and 
• threatening violence against school employees or students, a one-year misdemeanor. 

"Threatening the lives of students and staff, whether with intent to harm or simply to disrupt, is an outrage, particularly in the wake of the tragedy in Oxford," State Superintendent Dr. Michael Rice said. "Our students and staff should feel safe in our schools, and anyone that threatens that safety should be subject to swift and significant consequences." 

The video can be viewed on the Department of Attorney General's YouTube page. 

MI AG's YouTube channel

If you receive a threat or know of a threat of violence against your community, please contact your local law enforcement.  

You can also leave a tip with the state's OK2SAY hotline by calling 8-555-OK2SAY (855-565-2729) or texting 652729 (OK2SAY). The hotline operates 24/7 and protects the confidentiality of the reporter's identity. 

OK2SAY, which is housed within the Michigan State Police, provides for confidential reports of potential self-harm, harm to others, or criminal acts including, but not limited to, sexual abuse, assault, or rape, directed at students, school employees, or schools in this state.  

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Inspector General for the Social Security Administration "Newest Imposter Scam Tactic"

  

Inspector General Warns of Newest Imposter Scam Tactic

December 13, 2021

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Gail S. Ennis, the Inspector General for the Social Security Administration (SSA), is advising the public about the latest development involving Social Security-related scams that use fraudulent SSA letterhead to feign legitimacy and gain trust to target individuals for money or personal information.

Scammers are using U.S. mail delivery to send fraudulent letters, advising the recipient to call a toll-free number to activate an increase in SSA benefits, such as a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA). The letters appear to be from an SSA official and are designed to look like real SSA letterhead; however, they are not from SSA.

Inspector General Ennis is reminding the public that the COLA is automatic for all SSA beneficiaries and does not require activation. Beneficiaries can view their COLA notice online through their personal my Social Security account at https://www.ssa.gov/myaccount/.

Inspector General Ennis previously warned about scammers using the real names of SSA and OIG officials—many of which are publicly available on the Internet. Common tactics include scammers citing “badge numbers” of law enforcement officers, sending emails with attachments containing real personal information about a fake “investigation,” or phishing for personal information by texting links to click on and “learn more” about a Social Security-related problem.

Recognizing the signs of a scam can help you avoid falling victim to one. It’s a scam if someone:

• Threatens to suspend your Social Security number
• Warns of arrest or legal action
• Demands immediate payment
• Requires payment by gift card, prepaid debit card, Internet currency, or by mailing cash
• Pressures you for personal information (date of birth, SSN or bank account number)
• Requests secrecy
• Threatens to seize your bank account
• Promises to increase your Social Security benefit
• Tries to gain your trust by providing fake “documentation” or false “evidence”
• Makes demands and threats, or requests immediate action.

“Social Security will never threaten, scare, or pressure you to take immediate action,” Inspector General Ennis said. “If you receive a suspicious call, text message, email, or letter hang up immediately or ignore the message. Visit ssa.gov and contact SSA directly if you have an ongoing business to resolve.”

Inspector General Ennis also advises that if you owe money to Social Security, SSA will mail you a letter with payment options and appeal rights. SSA will also send a letter to notify beneficiaries about the COLA; however, it is automatic and does not require activation.

Visit our website https://oig.ssa.gov to report Social Security-related scams. Our scam awareness page provides more information about scams and past alerts. Follow SSA OIG on Facebook and Twitter for the latest information. Please share this information with your friends and family to help protect them from Social Security-related scams.

Members of the public are encouraged to report suspected Social Security fraud to the OIG at https://oig.ssa.gov.