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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 1, 2022)
sNok signflz DECEMBER 1, 2022 5 Is the IRS really texting you? Nope Federal Trade Commission hosts webinar on spotting scams and fraud in Indian Country <Never, ever give your information to someone over the phone. I9d also like to remind people no law enforcement de- partment, no matter where they9re from, would ever ask for money over the phone. If that happens, call us right away.= By Danielle Harrison Smoke Signals assistant editor/staff writer Before you reply to that text from an unknown number claiming to be a government agency, the phone call from tech support or your bank, or an e-mail asking you to verify payroll information, it would be wise to pause and not respond. More likely than not, it9s a scam- mer who wants to steal your per- sonal information for nefarious purposes. That was the message behind a Federal Trade Commission we- binar for Native American news media titled <Spotting and Avoiding Scams in Indian Country.= <Every year, scammers steal hundreds of millions of dollars from people by pretending to be government or tech support, selling useless products or promoting fake lotteries and sweepstakes,= an FTC press release stated. Approximately 40 people logged into the Zoom teleconferencing ap- plication on Thursday, Nov. 10, to attend the webinar. The brieong is part of a new national initiative by the FTC to <build public awareness among Native Americans about how to spot and avoid scams in their communities, as well as where to report them.= <The FTC has long been dedicated to protecting demographically di- verse communities and it is a prior- ity to reach out to Native American communities,= Bureau of Consumer Protection Deputy Director Monica Vaca said. <We are here to start a conversation about what fraud looks like.= The webinar included fraud sta- ~ Grand Ronde Tribal Police Chief Jake McKnight tistics, legal action the FTC took to oght it and get money back for consumers, free resources to help protect against scams and a per- sonal story from a Navajo Nation member about her experience being scammed by an auto dealer near the Reservation. Vaca shared some sobering fraud statistics from 2021: There were more than 2.9 million reports of fraud to the FTC, of which 25 percent of people reported losing money, adding up to a staggering $6.1 billion. <That9s just the ones we actually heard about,= she said. <We know fraud losses exceed that number.= The top scam of 2021 was the <imposter scam.= Essentially, a scammer contacts a person via phone, e-mail and increasingly through a text message, and pre- tends to be someone a person trusts from a well-known business, bank or government agency. They9ll tell you your Social Security number was compromised, you9ve been implicated in a crime, your bank account information is needed to process a refund, or there is a fam- ily member in need of help, to give a few examples. Vaca implored those who have been the victim or intended victim of a scam to report it to reportfraud. ftc.gov. Wednesday, December 21, 2022 2:00-3:30 or 5:00-6:30 p.m. In the Kwis Kwis & Chak Chak classrooms <We can use the information to bring civil lawsuits to stop illegal practices and, when it is possible, to get money back for people who lost it to scams or unscrupulous business practices,= she said. She cited a case example of Tate9s Auto Group in Arizona and New Mexico, which were charged in 2018 with deceiving customers and falsifying information on vehicle onancing forms. Many of those af- fected were members of the Navajo Nation. Ultimately, the dealerships paid a $450,000 settlement to ap- proximately 3,500 consumers who had been scammed by the dealer- ship9s deceptive business practices. <Cars are one of the biggest pur- chases consumers make and it9s a lifeline, a necessity to get from place to place,= Vaca said. A Navajo Nation Tribal member, <Sherrie,= who only used her orst name, told attendees about her experience being the victim of pred- atory dealership lending. The Navajo Reservation is ap- proximately 27,000 square miles and very dispersed, often with dirt and gravel roads, which can become treacherous during the win- ter. Sherrie, who owned a Nissan Sentra, wanted something more durable and safe. After receiving a flier in the mail, she visited a local dealership at the Reservation border town of Winslow, and ultimately was scammed into buying a new vehi- cle with a verbal promise that she could trade in her Nissan. A few weeks later, she began receiving phone calls about her car payment being late and was ultimately sent to collections for a $10,500 debt. Her car, which she thought was used for a trade-in, was auctioned off. With bills mounting and her credit ruined, she sought legal help from a Flagstaff nonprofit, DNA-People9s Legal Services, and after more than 18 months received a settlement from the auto dealer. Assistant Director of the Midwest Region Joannie Wei noted that other common scams in Indian Country include phishing e-mails with authentic-looking invoices, companies offering debt relief, tech support scams and callers asking for payment via gift cards or wire transfers. <That9s always 100 percent a scam,= she said. <Those issues are impacting communities broadly. We need to talk about these scams because the more we know, the more we will help people to avoid them.= If someone suspects they9re being targeted by a scam artist, Wei ad- vises never giving out personal or onancial information and resisting the pressure to act immediately. <Before you give out any informa- tion, tell somebody you trust about what is going on,= Wei said. She also advises browsing ftc.gov/ consumer-alerts to get up-to-date information about the latest frauds and scams. Grand Ronde Tribal Police Chief Jake McKnight provided some local context, but was not a participant in the webinar. <We9ve tried to get out and edu- cate as many people as we can in the community about these scams,= he said. <A common one is someone claiming to be from a government agency, usually the IRS, saying you need to pay back taxes now or go to jail.= McKnight said another scam is a variation of the imposter scam, where the caller poses as a fed- eral agent and tells the intended victim someone rented a car in another state in their name and it contained drugs and their Social Security number linked to different accounts. If they don9t cooperate with the investigation, the scam- mer says, they9ll go to jail. <We had a young Tribal member and her dad come in to tell us about the scam and we immediately told her to cancel her credit cards and check if her Social Security number had been used,= McKnight said. McKnight said that in the past few years the department hasn9t received as many reports as it used to, but that Tribal members should remain vigilant when interacting with someone they don9t know via phone, e-mail or text, especially if they insist on being paid via wire transfers or gift cards. <Never, ever give your informa- tion to someone over the phone,= he said. <I9d also like to remind people no law enforcement department, no matter where they9re from, would ever ask for money over the phone. If that happens, call us right away.= The nonemergency line for the Grand Ronde Tribal Police is 503- 879-1835. McKnight cautions that get- ting consumers9 money back after they9ve been scammed is very difocult. <We do the best we can, but it9s a very rare occasion that anything happens,= he said. <If you don9t know the person, don9t give out your information. You just can9t do that anymore. Scams are happen- ing everywhere.= þ We want to hear from you! Grand Ronde Head Start Preschool The Grand Ronde Health & Wellness Center Comment Box is located at the entrance of the Health & Wellness Center, next to the drinking fountain. Share your experience, good or bad with us! þ