‘Beware, beware, beware’ of emails arning from DO Line: WBeware of opening emails that appear to be from a friend or relative asking you to look at a website. We have received more than one recently. The latest was supposed-ly from a friend ask-ing us to look at a CNN website. The note said “ It is one of the best.” The sig-nature on the email had his first and last name on it. Our friend wouldn’t have to identify himself that way. Also, when we looked at the email address that sent it, his email address wasn’t shown. The email was from anneke@cog-nito. nl. Oops. It’s not from our friend. Also, the website address had nothing to do with CNN. When we checked it out, Google had no record of it. If you see anything in your inbox that looks suspicious from a friend or relative, you can call them to see if they sent it first, or simply press the delete button. It’s not worth tak-ing a chance. Our motto has to be “ Beware, beware, beware.” We have to be on our guard for just about everything these days. P. S. Speaking of Beware — Christina Tusan, an attor-ney for the Bureau of Consumer Protection at the Federal Trade Commission ( FTC), has just issued a warning that peo-ple are being stung by scammers who are spoofing Pay Pal. The scam generally goes like this: You post a high-value item, like a used car, for sale online. In no time at all, you get an email from a buyer willing to pay full price and some-times even more. However, he sets certain conditions about the sale. He is only willing to pay by Pay Pal or insists the sale must happen right away. What’s going on? It’s a ruse to steal your personal information, money or merchandise. Tusan suggests that if you have a Pay Pal account, make sure you have been paid before you ship. Never follow links in emails from people you don’t know. The safest approach is to open a browser win-dow, navigate to Pay Pal and log in yourself. Also, if the buyer claims to have sent extra money and asks for some back, that’s a big red flag. Dear DO Line: You had a DO Line column a month or so ago that asked if anyone else had gotten phone calls or mails about needing septic insurance for their water lines. I didn’t get a call, but I did get a letter requesting $ 5.49 a month, $ 16.47 quarterly or $ 65.88 annually. They want my credit card num-ber or access to my bank account for payment. This sends up a red flag to me. I, too, think it is another scam and didn’t respond. Mrs. J.P., Greenville Dear J.P.: Thanks for dropping off the letter you received. It is interesting because your letter is from Homeserve USA. The DO Line column has had more than one reader contact us in the past few years after receiving mailings from Homeserve. SEE DO LINE, PAGE 2A DO LINE BY MARTHA HIGBIE Article Continued Below See DO LINE on Page A02 DO LINE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1A The letters seemed to be misleading and had confus-ing language, and we found confusion and numerous complaints from consum-ers and public utility offi-cials due to its design and wording. The local mailings that our readers received could possibly have been misread. For example, they stated that a recent review of the service area (Montcalm County) showed that the recipient didn’t have water line coverage from them. When we read the exact wording, they were simply saying this person isn’t their customer. Your letter states: “ This letter is to inform you that as a homeowner you are responsible for the full cost of maintaining and repair-ing your exterior water line. We have found that your property at … (puts your specific address in the let-ter) is not covered with Water Service Line Coverage from us.” Later in the letter the term “to accept this optional coverage” is used. Some years ago, their letters sug-gested the service was a mandatory fee imposed by the local utility company. At that time, legal action was taken against them in at least two states to stop them from making these state-ments. Fines were imposed. Got a problem or a question? Call DO Line at (616) 754-9303 ext. 3151 or send an e-mail to doline@staffordgroup. >
Posted on: Sat, 29 Nov 2014 23:26:30 +0000
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