The following crimes have been reported in Providence Plantation YTD.
| Crimes Reported | # |
| Assault – non-aggravated | 4 |
| Burglary | 1 |
| Extortion/Blackmail | 1 |
| Fraud/ID Theft | 5 |
| Intimidation-Threat | 1 |
| Larceny of a Vehicle | 1 |
| Larceny – False Pretense | 1 |
| Vandalism**** | 1 |
| Total Crimes Reported | 15 |
****Arrest made.
33.33% of all crimes reported in Providence Plantation were for fraud/identity theft.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing how people and banks need to think about scams and fraud. You can’t necessarily trust what you see or hear, and criminals are experimenting with different ways to use AI to trick you into sending them money or sharing access to your bank account. You also have to watch out for scammers who are after your personal information, which they can sell or use to steal your identity.
Below are ways you can lessen the chance of becoming a fraud/identity theft victim.
Protect yourself from scammers
It’s all too easy to be targeted by scammers. There are, however, some things you can do to minimize your risk:
- Choose secure passwords for financial accounts. Set up multi-factor authentication on any site that offers it.
- Be wary of unsolicited emails, texts, or phone calls that ask for your financial information.
- Set up login and new transaction alerts for your bank accounts and credit card accounts.
- Freeze your credit files at all three credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion). It’s free, and it prevents anyone from accessing your credit without your permission. That makes it hard or impossible for someone to open a new account in your name. If you believe you’ve been hit by a scammer, contact your bank and credit card companies right away. That can help protect you against any financial losses.
Stay one step ahead of scammers
With 80% of fraud now happening online, it’s more important than ever to safeguard your digital footprint.
Shopping safely online
There are 3 common ways that attackers can take advantage of online shoppers:
- Creating fraudulent sites and email messages –Unlike traditional shopping, where you know that a store is actually the store it claims to be, attackers can create malicious websites or email messages that appear to be legitimate. Attackers may also misrepresent themselves as charities. Attackers create these malicious sites and email messages to try to convince you to supply personal and financial information.
- Intercepting insecure transactions – If a vendor does not use encryption, an attacker may be able to intercept your information as it is transmitted.
- Targeting vulnerable computers – If you do not take steps to protect your computer from viruses or other malicious code, an attacker may be able to gain access to your computer and all of the information on it.
How can you protect yourself?
- Do business with reputable vendors – Some attackers try to trick you by creating malicious websites that appear to be legitimate, so you should verify the legitimacy before supplying any personal or financial information. (For further info go to https://www.us-cert.gov/ncas/tips/ST04-014.)
Attackers may obtain a site certificate for a malicious website to appear more authentic, so review the certificate information, particularly the “issued to” information. Locate and note phone numbers and physical addresses of vendors in case there is a problem with your transaction.
- Make sure your information is being encrypted – Many sites use secure sockets layer (SSL) to encrypt information. Indications that your information will be encrypted include a URL that begins with “https:” instead of “http:” and a padlock icon. If the padlock is closed, the information is encrypted. Make sure that the icon is in the appropriate location for your browser.
- Be wary of emails requesting purchase or account information – If you receive an unsolicited email from a business, directly log on to the authentic website by typing the address yourself.
- Use a credit card – There are laws to limit your liability for fraudulent credit card charges, but you may not have the same level of protection for your debit cards. You can minimize potential damage by using a single, low-limit credit card to making all of your online purchases. Also use a credit card when using a payment gateway such as PayPal, Google Wallet, or Apple Pay.
- Check your shopping app settings – There is no legal limit on your liability with money stored in a shopping app or on a gift card.
- Check your statements – Keep a record of your purchases and copies of confirmation pages to compare with bank statements.
- Check privacy policies – Make sure you understand how your information will be stored and used.
What To Do If You Suspect AI Fraud or Scams
If you fall for a scam and send the scammer your information or money, there are a few things you can do:
- Contact your financial institution: If you sent a payment or shared your login information with the scammer, contact the financial institution right away. The institution can help you secure your account, and it might be able to reverse some types of transactions. You may also want to change your username, password and secret questions.
- File a scam report with the FTC: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) tracks scam reports and helps warn other people about new scams and trends. You can report the scam at ReportFraud.ftc.gov
- Report the scam to the police: You may also want to report the scam or fraud to the police department. The resulting police report might be helpful when you’re reporting the fraud or scam to other organizations and trying to get your money back.
- File an identity theft report: If the scammer has your personal information, you can file a report with the FTC on IdentityTheft.gov. Based on your report, the website will generate a recovery plan with steps you can take to recover and secure your identity. It will also create an FTC Identity Theft Report that you can use in place of a police report in some situations.
- Freeze your credit reports: Freezing your credit reports with Experian, Equifax and TransUnion can help keep someone from opening a new credit account in your name. You can freeze and unfreeze your reports for free, but you’ll need to freeze each of your reports separately.
Crime Reporting
It is important to report all incidents of crime to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department. For crimes in progress and other emergencies, dial 911. For non-emergencies, and past crimes, call 311. Report the following past crimes using the Online Reporting System: Larceny, Harassing Phone Calls, Theft from Auto, or Property Damage at http://www.cmpd.org.
Also, please notify me at hkatowitz@windstream.net or 704-849-9234, between 9am and 9pm.
Harvey Katowitz
Security Chairperson