PlanetFeedback's ShopperCast

Phishing... With a Twist

We're all familiar with phishing.  But phishing has left your home computer and has moved on to new territory:  Your cell phone. 

Some financial institution members/ customers have received text messages on their cell phones containing the same scare tactic as the phishing emails.  People may trust the message, figuring, "How would someone else know which bank I belong go?"  But scammers send the same email to large groups, knowing that a certain percentage of recipients are customers or members of that financial institution.  And now the same scammers are targeting cell phone users via text messages.

Fraud/security personnel in the banking industry remind people that you would never receive an email or text message about your account, asking for your account information.  If you receive a text message of this type, immediately notify your financial institution so they can warn others.

Build a better mousetrap, and a scammer will figure out a way to steal the cheese.

~Contributed by Angela~

The Wolf in Good Samaritan's Clothing

In a recent local news story, the not-usually-newsworthy stolen purse has a twist:  Thieves stole a woman's purse at a crowded bar/restaurant, with her cell phone inside.  She tried calling her own phone, with no results.

Hours later, the thieves called her friend's cell phone, told her the purse had been turned in to the bar and she could get it in the morning.  The woman was relieved and continued with her evening.  The next morning, when she called the restaurant, they had no clue what she was talking about.

The thieves apparently were attempting to buy some time and get more use out of her credit cards and/or cell phone.

We don't think that everyone would automatically cancel bank cards, cell phone service, etc., if they were expecting to get everything back "in an hour" or "tomorrow morning."  This is a wake-up call for many, a reminder for others, to remain vigilant with one's data.

~Contributed by Angela~

Identity Theft Insurance: The Verdict Is In

The federal government estimates that each year at least 9 million Americans have their credit/debit card stolen and fraudulently used and more than 3.5 million Americans have their identities stolen.

Commercials on television for identity (ID) theft insurance got the better of us:  We dug further, 'cause that's what you pay us to do.

Among independent finance and consumer-oriented journalists, the general consensus is that ID theft insurance is a waste of money.  While it's cheap to purchase, the deductible often is high, even as high a $1,000 (the typical ID theft victim accrues about $1,200 in expenses such as phone calls, photocopying, etc.).  Also, in this day of cell phones with unlimited calling and no long-distance charges, coverage of phone bills probably doesn't help most people.  In addition, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, ID theft insurance "does not cover direct monetary losses incurred as a result of identity theft."  One expert noted that the costs associated with stolen credit cards usually are minimal or nothing at all, as the process of getting out of paying those bills is straightforward.

The problem lies with true ID theft -- where someone steals your identity and lives a life in your name.  ID theft insurance can't do anything about your ruined credit rating or even your criminal record (in extreme cases).

Furthermore, people who purchase this insurance likely are already being very cautious with their private data, which makes them less likely to have their identities stolen than the rest of us.

If you've been considering this insurance, heed our wisdom and spend your money elsewhere (like sending Godiva chocolates to our satellite offices).  Or, do your own research and make up your mind all on your own!  (But we'd still love some chocolate.)

Contributed by Angela.

LifeLock

You have probably seen the commercial.  Todd Davis walks around a large city and tells his Social Security Number to anyone who will listen, or he has someone drive a large truck around with his SSN on the side.  If you want to see it go to you tube and type in LifeLock commercial.

This guy is so confident of the ability of his company to protect your identity that he is offering up his identity as proof.  Wow that takes some guts right?  Well as it turns out this may indeed be a self fulfilling prophecy.  It turns out that Todd Davis may have to eat his words, and pay his lawyers big money all at the same time.  Not only has his identity been used more than 20 times to obtain drivers licenses, someone successfully used his SSN to obtain a payday loan......whoops!  He is now being sued by numerous customers in a few different states alleging fraud.  They say that not only does this product not work, but that he knew it wouldn't because he has  been a victim of ID theft himself.

Note to self.....DO NOT POST SSN ON SIDE OF TRUCK OR PULL BEHIND ON AN AIRPLANE OVER THE BEACH.

--Contributed (Secretly) by Renee---shhhh!

An Apple A Day

If you're in the market for a Apple iPhone, may we suggest waiting until summertime.  Not only is is the new 3G (or third generation) iPhone going to be released, but AT&T is planning on subsidized $200 for each iPhone, which will bring it down to $199 if you sign a 2-year contract. 

(Of course this information is released on the heels of the release of the economic stimulus checks. Hmmmmm..... cynic much?)

Two other iPhones are going to be released too ~ one with 8 gigs, the other with 16 gigs.  And no, the subsidies don't apply to these babies.

Specs are trickling in at this point ~ probably more to raise curiosity and stir up the market for it ~ but this new iPhone is supposed to be 2.5 mm thinner than the original and will have a GPS chip.

These phones are supposed to hit the stores in late June. 

In other very cool Apple news, there's a new plan out there for people with disabilities ~ persons who are deaf, hard of hearing, have a speech disability and/or hearing loss can now purchase a plan for their iPhone that works with thier disability.  For $40, the user gets unlimited data and visual voice mail.  But don't think that just anyone can buy this plan and claim a disability ~ there are disability certification forms that must be completed. 

--Contributed by Deb

What's In The Box?

When Cynthia opened the box to her brand new Lexmark printer, she found a note inside it that read "This printer may or may not come with a USB cable".  As you might have divined, she was perplexed enough to first call Lexmark and then write a complaint via PlanetFeedback. 

When she called the company she learned that Lexmark does not include USB cables in its packaging.  Okay... so we don't understand that note in the box.  May or may not come with a USB cable.  That's just a little bit vague.  We don't know about you, but when we buy a product and rely on the fact that everything we need will be in there, we get a little bit annoyed when it's not.

Especially when we're then told that we have to fork over additional money in order to get it up and running.  Sure, it's easy enough to say - doesn't EVERYBODY have a spare USB cable lying around their home?  Well, that's not technically the point. 

It sounds to us like the packaging was, at a minimum, slightly misleading.  And there's no excuse for that.  Be up front.  If you're not going to include a fairly critical piece of equipment in the box, just say so.  Don't make your customers ask, as Cynthia did, whether she got an unlucky box. 

--Contributed by Deb

More Bad News From China

Need another reason to avoid purchasing products from China?

This time it's not lead in toys or plastic in pet food ~ it turns out that many new electronic gadgets coming onto the market from China have more then the standard bells and whistles you would expect. 

They also have computer viruses already installed that steal passwords, open back doors for hackers and make your computer generate and send out spam.  Lovely. 

What a terrible trap for the unwary - connect that new digital picture frame to grandma's computer so your family send her new pictures of her grandkids and the next thing you know, grandma's passwords are being stolen. 

Whether these viruses are present accident or design, it's always best to make sure your anti-virus software applications are current before plugging anything new into your computer, even items you might not suspect of containing a virus - like that brand new iPod or your GPS system.

Better safe than sorry.

--Contributed by Deb

The Injustice Of It All

If you notice prices going up at your local Best Buy, you can thank Raelyn Campbell of Washington, D.C.  In the computer equivalent of a lost pair of pants, Campbell is suing the big box store for $54 million after they lost her laptop.

Yes... you read that right.... $54 MILLION. 

Now we would wholeheartedly agree that Campbell is owed something for her loss.  After all, Best Buy did indeed lose her computer, which purportedly contained personal identification, such as Campbell's social security number and date of birth and that does increase Campbell's risk for identity theft.

Campbell herself admits that $54 million is a ridiculous amount to sue for (especially after she's already accepted $1,110 from Best Buy plus has been given a $500 gift card) which could put her in a precarious legal predicament.

Warning:  Legal Content Ahead

The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure include Rule 11 ~ which is a rule designed to keep parties from embellishing claims, making false claims or otherwise intending to harass the opposing party.  Under part b of Rule 11, the party filing a complaint makes the following representations:

(1) it is not being presented for any improper purpose, such as to harass, cause unnecessary delay, or needlessly increase the cost of litigation. 

Does suing for a ridiculous amount needlessly increase the cost of litigation?  After all, it ensures Best Buy has to defend it, rather than attempting to settle the case.  Means they have to hire lawyers and experts.  Moreover, Campbell admits she sued for an over-the top amount of money.  Yep, we'd say that could be construed as attempting to increase the cost of litigation.

If Campbell was, herself, an attorney filing this behalf of a client, we expect she might just get a letter from the Court asking her to appear at a Rule 11 hearing. 

Do you know what happened to Roy Pearson, the administrative law judge who sued the dry cleaners for $54 million?  In 2007 Pearson lost his job, in part because of his stupid, frivolous lawsuit.  One can only hope that history repeats itself and Raelyn Campbell gets what she deserve for bogging down the wheels of justice.

--Contributed by Deb

How Smart Is Your Cell Phone?

Surely you didn't think that hackers were going to limit their activities to sending viruses to infect your computer, did you?  Puh-lease... that is soooo 20th century. If you have one of those "smart" phones that can handle data and messaging, you need to be aware that your phone could be at risk for cell phone viruses.

Viruses can attack your cell phone through internet downloads, multimedia messaging service attachments and Bluetooth transfers.  They could come disguised as ringtones, updates to your phone system, or game downloads.

Some are silly - like the ones that cause a pop-up.  However others are much more devastating.  They could wipe your cell phones memory, change your settings once per month, or cause you to have enormous cell phone use or texting charges. 

Others are REALLY sinister, like the ones called "pranking for profit." They can redirect your calls to a different carrier in a different country, leaving you with a huge phone bill. Or "vishing," when you'll get a voice call that asks for information, holding itself out as a legitimate business. A downloaded application may send information about your phone account to hackers and insert a program that monitors your key-clicks. 

There are applications out there from companies like Symantec and McAfee to protect you.  But your best bet is to protect yourself first by using some common sense.  The same rules apply to cell phones as computers... when in doubt, don't open it.

--Contributed by Deb

Verizon Can You Hear Them Now?

For the last few months Planetfeedback.com has been inundated with NUMEROUS letters asking a fairly simple question, Hey Verizon whats up with the crippled blackberry?!?!?!?!?!  Scratching our collective heads after reading what seemed like the one hundredth letter (practically verbatim, yeah weird), we decided that we at ShopperCast were going to get to the bottom of this mystery.

We googled simply Verizon 8830 GPS and not surprisingly many hits came up.  Seems there is all kinds of speculation about what exactly is going on.  Some people think this is a grand scheme by Verizon to force subscribers to purchase Verizons GPS and Mapping software to run on these super phones.  Verizon seems to have a plausible explanation though.