Residents advised to watch out for scams

Wrangell residents are advised to be on the alert for scams by phone or by email.

“There isn’t a week goes by where somebody hasn’t sent money off,” said Chief Doug McCloskey of the Wrangell Police Department.

One example of a scam which has been prevalent of late has promised lottery winnings, whereby a person receives a call or email message informing them they have unexpectedly won a sweepstakes or drawing from a foreign contest, usually Canada or Australia. McCloskey explained the sender asks for a smaller amount than what was supposedly won to cover taxes and shipping costs.

The state Consumer Protection Unit calls this advance fee fraud, one of a number of pitches made to bilk people of money or financial information.

Another classic example is the “4-1-9” or “Nigerian prince” scam, where someone posing as a wealthy or influential official has selected the contacted individual to help transfer a large sum of money to a United States-based account. The person is then asked to submit a transfer fee to help enable the transaction, and is sometimes approached for additional funds when problems arise. It’s the latest iteration of a trick which dates back several centuries.

“The premise hasn’t changed, but the delivery has,” commented McCloskey.

Those suspecting they have received a scam email are invited to forward it to spam@uce.gov, a site maintained by the Federal Trade Commission. If you have lost money to such a scheme, report the loss to the Secret Service’s Anchorage field office at 907-271-5148.

McCloskey advised residents not to send money to anyone they have not expressly purchased an item from, and to be wary of requests for financial assistance made online by strangers. A list of other scams and safety tips can be found at the state’s CPU site at http://www.law.alaska.gov/department/civil/consumer/fraud.html.