Improved OnGuardOnLine Site Teaches Cyber Safety to the Average Person

One of the better places for the average person to learn about the sometimes murky waters of the Internet is free and sponsored by the Federal Trade Commission. Although OnGuardOnline.gov and AlertaEnLinea.gov, its Spanish-language counterpart have been around for awhile -- some new and exciting improvements have been made to the site with a just released...

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Virtual Kidnapping - A New Version of a Confidence Trick!

Not all the kidnappings in Mexico and the United States are real. The US Immigration and Customs division gets reports of virtual kidnappings, where the intent is to extort money, but the alleged victim is safe and sound. The kidnappers appear to be able to find out who is traveling to Mexico and/or is coming into the US illegally. They then call a family member or loved one, claiming they have the tourist or illegal immigrant hostage and demand money for their safe return.I happened to pick up this story on Fox News, which reported that Immigration...

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Will Ike Spike Another Round of Price Gouging?

With Hurricane Ike headed for South Texas -- some are predicting that greedy businesses will gouge people by charging unfair prices for necessary goods and services.Yesterday, the Texas AAA issued a press release encouraging people to report any suspected gouging. They noted in past disasters hotels, gas stations and convenience stores have been caught taking advantage of other people's unfortunate situation during a disaster. Goods that frequently have their prices artificially raised include gas, drinking water, batteries and food.The Texas AAA...

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Are Street Gangs using Check Fraud to Fund Themselves?

We keep hearing how white collar crime is becoming more organized. A recent story in Arizona shows how traditional gangsters are getting involved in white collar crime.In 2006, Postal Investigators investigating checks being stolen from the mail tied the activity into one of the more violent street gangs operating in the Hermosa Park area of Phoenix. This led to one of the biggest street gang cases of the year.Yesterday, Phoenix police and FBI agents began serving warrants on the gangsters involved in this activity. 102 were indicted in this operation....

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Were Internet Scammers Preparing to Exploit Hurricane Gustav?

Gustav has passed and it seems like it wasn't as bad as it could have been. One positive aspect to it all was the emergency responders, who were on top of it this time. They really did a first-class job of ensuring the public's safety and deserve to be commended for their efforts.Unfortunately, this might not be the case with everyone who was preparing for the worst Gustav might have dished out. Cyber criminals appear to have been positioning themselves on the Internet to divert as much of the relief money as they could get away with. And although...

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