Fraud and the Internet

Resources for Avoiding Fraud

Willie W. Webfoot on on-line and off-line fraud

"Experience is not what happens to a man; it is what a man does with what happens to him."

—Aldous Huxley

On-line life mirrors off-line life in a number of ways, both good and bad. Most of us would agree that the majority of people and businesses that we encounter are on the up-and-up. However, there are people who turn a profit by preying on other people in the world and some of those folks have Internet accounts. Those folks also might be extremely savvy at getting you to reveal information like your credit card number.

The main way to avoid being scammed is to exercise caution before you reveal financial or any other personal information you don't want a crook to own. If you are uncertain about a business or service, use the links below to check for complaints and general tips to keep you a little safer from fraud both on and off-line.

National Fraud Information Center: The National Fraud Information Center offers all kinds of information on various schemes and scams that are designed to part you and your cash. The Shopping Tips page provide cautionary words for on-line and over-the-phone shoppers.

The Better Business Bureau: The Better Business Bureau promotes ethical business practices. This site allows you to locate your local agency, file a complaint on-line, search through their reference library and stay tuned to the latest consumer and business alerts.

Federal Citizen Information Center: This agency has made hundreds of publications they provide available on the web. The site is searchable and features alerts and a what's new section to help you keep up with the latest consumer news. An excellent resource not only for avoiding fraud, but for practical consumer-friendly information on everything from health care to automobiles.

Consumer World: This site provides links to 1400 consumer-oriented sites. Need we say more?

Safeshopping.org: Information from the American Bar Association for people who shop online.

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