In the wake of scams on Craigslist and eBay in which people send in money for products which they never receive and then try in vain to get in touch with the person who posted the ad or product, a new scam has emerged.
This new scam targets those who have been victimized in this way by sending e-mails offering a reverse e-mail lookup. The ads read: “Tired of receiving e-mails from an unknown e-mail address? Are they threatening in tone? Has someone on Craigslist or EBay taken your hard-earned money and quit responding to your e-mails? Are you ready to find out who they are? You can find out in just a couple of minutes.”
The ad is always accompanied by a link, which the recipient is invited to click on in order to conduct a reverse e-mail lookup. Most offer the lookup at a modest price, but there are a few that claim to be free as well.
The free ones are the ones to watch out for. While they may claim to be free, you’ll find that at some point during the transaction, you’ll be asked to pay for the service.
One of the biggest problems with these sites is that very often, there is no guarantee that you’ll get all of the information you’re looking for. Some of the information that is typically given is the full name of the owner of the e-mail address, current address, marital status, telephone number and criminal background records. Most of the time, only a portion of the information is there, and you’ll be asked to pay in order to get the rest of the details.
Scammers also use these types of sites in order to get consumers to enter their own personal information. You’ll be asked to input your own information, including credit card numbers, in order to proceed with the transaction. If it’s a scam site, you’ll get no information about the owner of the e-mail…instead, you’ll become a victim of identity theft.
If you decide to use a reverse lookup service, be sure you use one that is secure and that you are comfortable with. Look for “https” in the URL, instead of just “http.” A legitimate company should also have a money back guarantee, so that if you’re not satisfied with the information you receive, you can get your money back.
The safest way to handle e-mails that are unsolicited is to delete them and report them to the Federal Trade Commission. Copy the URL prior to deletion and send it via e-mail to the FTC, but don’t open the e-mail or click on any links contained within it.
Better safe than sorry.
Tags: Credit card fraud, Identity Theft, reverse email lookup, unsolicited email
