Category Archives: Scams

Opioid Crisis: The lawsuits that could bankrupt manufacturers and distributors

Posted on December 17, 2018 by Jim deMaine

Ed note: It looks like the opioid manufacturers and distributors are going to be taken to court by a “county lawyer” who successfully took on big tobacco and enron. This segment on 60 minutes is worth watching. Click here to … Continue reading →

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How to identify BS – innovative course at the University of Washington

Posted on November 3, 2018 by Jim deMaine

How can we sort out the fake news and all the BS that is thrown our way. Well, the UW has now put together a one credit course. The s… word might annoy you but the academic approach to sorting … Continue reading →

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Common scams – a primer

Posted on August 8, 2018 by Jim deMaine

From The Skyliner, December 2015 by Dr. Jerry Lewis, Skyline Resident Although the Federal Trade Commission is the focal point for collecting data on scams, most scams are never reported because of embarrassment from falling for one or lack of … Continue reading →

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The danger of conspiracy theories in the age of social media

Posted on August 5, 2018 by Jim deMaine

“Q” is a secret anonymous deep state individual with the highest security clearance. He (or she) is sending cryptic messages to his followers – the adherents to the Qanon conspiracy theory. According to him the Mueller investigation is fake and … Continue reading →

Posted in Essays, Law, Media, Politics, Scams | 1 Comment

Phone call – the IRS is bringing a lawsuit against you

Posted on July 30, 2018 by Jim deMaine

This morning I received a call with a local prefix. The recording said that the IRS is bringing a lawsuit against me for unpaid taxes. Of course they offered to help me out and began to ask for identifying data. … Continue reading →

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Tips about Medicare Fraud

Posted on November 29, 2017 by Jim deMaine

New Medicare cards will be mailed starting in April 2018. Identity theft from stolen Medicare numbers is becoming more common. To help combat fraud, Medicare is removing Social Security Numbers from cards and replacing them with a new, unique number for … Continue reading →

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Let’s (not) go phishing

Posted on November 4, 2017 by Jim deMaine

Sally Soest reminds us that emails can be an easy way for us to be exposed to malware, ransomware and fraud. Wisely she called her bank rather than responding to a “phishy” email about her account. Beware when an email … Continue reading →

Posted in Finance, Safety, Scams, Science and Technology | 1 Comment

New Survey Shows Consumers are Overconfident of Their Ability to Spot Imposter Scammers

Posted on August 2, 2017 by Jim deMaine

To avoid imposters, consider these tips on avoiding some common imposter scams: click here for the full article in Age Wise King County. IRS Imposter Scam—The IRS will not contact you by phone about paying back taxes without first sending … Continue reading →

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How to avoid being hacked like the DNC

Posted on December 14, 2016 by Jim deMaine

What a difference a few key strokes can make on your computer. Here’s a few suggestions that should be learned from the recent attacks by a Russians: If you get an email with a “link” to click on – don’t … Continue reading →

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