Consumers beware: 'Tis the season for fraud, rip-offsIt's the season for people to pull out their checkbooks and credit cards to buy holiday presents, book travel and donate to charities.
But Washington area consumers do, a growing number of them are getting ripped off. Reports of consumer fraud -- particularly online scams -- have spiked in recent years. And the holidays are prime time for fraud and identity theft, because customers are constantly handing over their credit card numbers and people are more likely to fall for scams.
"The holidays are expensive, and people may not have money for travel, for gifts," said Elaine Lidholm, communications director for the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. "People are willing to toss up their disbelief and common sense."
So they fall prey to scams that include fake online auctions, sweepstakes awards that never arrive and charities that don't exist.
Reports of fraud, identity theft and related consumer complaints jumped 225 percent in Virginia between 2004 and 2009, according to Federal Trade Commission data. And those complaints rose 132 percent in Maryland and 92 percent in the District during that time period.
The still-faltering economy is behind some of that increase, Lidholm said.
"For people who have been out of work, as time goes on, they become more gullible," she said. "They want it to be true so badly."
It's especially easy for that to happen during the holiday season, when people are looking for extra cash, said John Breyault, director of the fraud center at the National Consumers League.
And as more people are shopping online -- the market research firm Coremetrics reported that online sales on "Cyber Monday," the Monday after Thanksgiving, rose 14 percent last year -- the Internet is increasingly a source for holiday scammers.
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WashingtonExaminer.com
June 11, 2009, 06:00:18 PM
