Holiday scams: 6 more to avoid

Last week, I wrote about six holiday scams and identity theft schemes for which you should watch out. Here are the rest of the 12 scams of the season.

GIFT CARD SCAMS

Gift cards are a good way to make sure your gift is something the person receiving it will actually use. Scammers go to racks of gift cards and, using handheld scanners, read the code on the magnetic strip of the card and the number on the front. They put the card back in the display and periodically check with the retailer by calling its 800 number to check whether the card has been activated. Once it is activated, they either create a counterfeit card or order things online without having an actual card in hand.

To avoid this problem, purchase cards from behind the customer service desk, and if the card is pre-loaded, always ask for the card to be scanned to show it is fully valued.

PUPPY SCAMS

Puppies are a popular holiday gift. Scammers set up phony websites purporting to be breeders of purebred dogs. The scammers send photographs of the dogs. Often these photographs are taken by the scammers from websites of legitimate breeders. In many cases, after a price is agreed upon, the scammer requires additional payments for shipping, insurance and veterinarian fees. Once the money is sent, the victim is told to go to the airport to pick up the dog. Of course, when the victim gets to the airport, there is no dog.

Even if you make contact with a legitimate breeder over the Internet, do not buy a dog without seeing the dog and the facility selling the dog. Get an independent veterinarian's report on the dog and check out the seller with the American Kennel Club.

PHISHING SCAMS

The holiday season is filled with e-mails luring you to websites for discounted merchandise, coupons and myriad other enticements to click on links in tainted websites that download malware that will steal the information from your computer and make you a victim or identity theft.

You can never be sure if an e-mail you receive is legitimate, so if you are tempted to click on a link or provide personal information for what appears to be a legitimate purpose, ignore the e-mail and go to the real website for the company to see whether the e-mail was indeed legitimate.

VACATION HOME RENTAL SCAM

There are many legitimate websites that offer wonderful vacation homes. These websites can be an easy way to find a great vacation home. Scammers also will put listings on vacation websites. The listing may look official, and there is a good reason for that. The listing often is a real online listing that has been copied by the scammer who merely puts in his name and contact information.

There are a number of red flags to look for in vacation home rental scams. First, as always, if the price is too good to be true, it usually is just that – not true. Never send your payment by a wire transfer or a cashier's check. Use a credit card, so you can retrieve your funds if the transaction is fraudulent. It is usually best to deal with websites that specialize in vacation homes, but you must remember that they cannot possibly monitor every listing to ensure it is legitimate. You can also go online to the tax assessor's office of the city where the property is located and look up the real owner. If it doesn't match the name of the person attempting to rent you the home, it is probably a scam.

CONTEST SCAM

Phony lotteries are one of the most successfully perpetrated scams throughout the year, and they become even more common during the holidays with holiday-related phony lotteries. Victims are told they won a lottery they never entered and they merely have to pay some taxes or fees to claim the prize.

It is hard to win a lottery. It is impossible to win one you haven't even entered. It is important to remember that no legitimate lottery charges you fees to claim your prize, and no legitimate lottery collects income taxes for the IRS. The taxes are either deducted from your prize or you are responsible for paying the taxes directly to the IRS.

GRANDPARENT SCAM

The grandparent scam is another one done throughout the year; however, it is more prevalent during the holidays when college-age grandchildren may be traveling. The scam starts with a phone call apparently from a grandchild who has encountered a medical or legal emergency and needs money immediately. Often the scammers get personal information to make the call sound legitimate through the child's Facebook page or other social media.

A good way to be proactive is to have a secret word a child should use in an emergency situation. If the caller doesn't know it, it is probably a scam. People traveling abroad should register with the State Department's Smart Traveler Enrollment Program at https://step.state.gov/step/. This program helps with communication in emergencies.

Steve Weisman is a lawyer, a professor at Bentley University and one of the country's leading experts in scams and identity theft. He writes the blog www.scamicide.com and his new book is Identity Theft Alert.