A new identity theft scam of the lowest form has emerged, using American soldiers.

Online imposters are stealing photos of U.S. soldiers they find on the Internet and are fraudulently placing them on dating Web sites in order to scam women out of money. In some cases, the photos being used are of soldiers who died overseas.

There is evidence that this crime is growing, and hundreds have reported being victimized. But the FBI, the State Department, the Federal Trade Commission and the National White Collar Crime Center all say there’s little they can do, because the scammers are mobile, operating out side of the country or from places like Internet cafes.

The Army has said it cannot go after these criminals either, since the perpetrators are not soldiers. It’s out of their jurisdiction.

The U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command has received frequent reports of such scams, which often involve requests for money from the victim, in order to purchase laptops, phones and transportation fees to be used by the “deployed solider” so the relationship between the “soldier” and the female victim can continue. The perpetrators often tell the women their units don’t have phones, or that they need money to help keep the unit’s Internet going. They also ask the victims for money to purchase leave papers, or to help pay for their flight home.

It is believed the perpetrators are mostly from Ghana, Angola and Nigeria.

To date, there have been no reports that any U.S. service people have suffered financial loss as a result of these scams. But the victims of this scam have lost thousands.

Before you engage in communication with anyone online or send money to someone you’ve met online, be sure to check them out thoroughly. And never give out your personal information to someone you’ve met online.

You never know who’s on the other end of that “send” button.

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Unemployment topped 10% in October, and the holiday season is upon us. Combine the two and you have a lot of people trying to looking for jobs. Sad to say, there’s also a whole lot of ID theft going on.

Most ID theft scams targeting job seekers fall are either phishing attacks or bogus job listings on legitimate job search websites.

The phishing attempts are emails describing job opportunities with more details or an application available if the recipient will only click on the included link. NEVER CLICK ON THE LINK! Clicking on the link enables the senders to install malware that can steal financial or personal information. In some cases, the linked site looks so legitimate; job seekers will complete an application, thereby voluntarily providing the scammers with all the information they need to commit ID theft.

The second scam sneaks up on job seekers using online employment listings. In this case, the adds look very promising, and if contacted, the “employers” may even conduct a phone interview with the job hunter. The scammer will claim to be impressed and instruct the interviewee to complete an application online.

In either of these scenarios the scammers may ask for bank account information so payment can be direct deposited, or claim they need it to do a credit check before they can make a job offer.

How to avoid ID theft while job hunting

• Provide only your name and an email address on your resume. Open a free email account used exclusively for your job search.
• Never give any bank account information during the application process. Legitimate employers never ask for this information until after the deal is sealed.
• Do a lot of research before you accept a job offered by an interviewer you’ve never met who claims to work for company you’ve never heard of. Get a physical address and check with the state agency that regulates or licenses businesses.

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The Better Business Bureau is alerting consumers about a new scam involving payday loans and phone calls from phony bill collectors.

Scammers presenting themselves as attorneys for the “Financial Accountability Association” or the “Federal Legislation of Unsecured Loans” accuse the call recipients of defaulting on payday loans and threaten them with lawsuits, arrest and extradition to California unless they make an immediate payment via wire or by providing credit card or bank account numbers.

Especially worrisome is the amount of personal information the scammers already have about their victims. The callers often have the victims’ Social Security numbers, home addresses, employment information, bank account numbers, driver’s license numbers and even names of friends and professional references. Such extensive data indicates the scam may be the result of a data breach.

This particular type of scam is known as “pretexting”. Webster’s defines a pretext as “a false reason or motive put forth to hide the real one; a cover up or a front.”

Take the following steps to avoid becoming a victim of pretexting:

• Never give out or confirm any personal or financial information over the phone unless you’ve initiated the call.
• If the caller accuses you of having an unpaid debt, ask for a written statement to confirm the debt.
• If the caller is threatening or abusive, obtain as much information as you can and call the Federal Trade Commission.
• Contact the Better Business Bureau if you think a pretexter has targeted you.

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