Minnesota Consumer Tips

The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office Consumer Protection Division offers brochures on consumer tips at their web site under the consumer alert section. You can also call and talk to a consumer specialist at (651) 296-3353 or toll free at 1-800-657-3787. There are also numbers for the hearing impaired, TTY: (651) 297-7206 or TTY: 1-800-366-4812.

The online bulletins include anything from debt collection to the many ways that scam artists try to put you in debt. The article on "phishing" is particularly relevant when every day we hear more about identity theft and people opening up their credit card billing and finding thousands of dollars in charges they didn’t make. Phishing with all due respect, I assume, to the band, is a scam where either by e-mail or phone someone tries to trick you into revealing private information. They will try to make you believe that they are a reputable financial institution, someone from the government, or any other company they think you may be willing to give information to. The actual phishing is almost always in the form of a request that you "verify" your personal information. They may ask you to tell them your credit card number and PIN number. Other personal data can be just as useful though it may sound harmless. Your social security number, address, and mother’s maiden name all help in the scam. They are useful to the scammer even if you don’t reveal your credit card number. He can get your credit card number from several other ways, and with your personal info can change your address and telephone number at your bank that issued you your card. You don’t receive any more bills and better yet if the bank notices higher than usual spending, they will call the scammer, not you, to verify the purchases.

The e-mail scams will look authentic and may even come with a real companies logo. The scammer may go so far as to create a fake page that is a copy of the real company’s web site. Remember, banks and companies that do business with you know your account number and do not need to verify it. As for a security breach or other "computer problem", most companies contact their customers in writing. If you get a call or an email asking for personal information say or do nothing with it. Instead use a number you know is valid (from the white page, on your credit card, etc.) and call the company whose name was used in the call or email. You will at least know who you are talking to and I can guarantee you they will not want to know what was asked for in the email or call. As I said they already know it.