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The Consumer Protection Division of the Kansas Attorney General’s office issued a warning this week about recent economic stimulus scams. In an effort to obtain financial information or to steal the identities of victims, these scams aim to falsely convince consumers that they have qualified for a portion of President Obama's economic stimulus package.
Some reported scams have appeared as pop-up ads on popular web sites such as Google and Facebook, advertizing that individuals may qualify for grants of up to $25,000. When people click on the ad they are directed to scam Web sites such as http://www.presidentobamagrants.com/ or http://www.jessicasmoneyblog.com/. Viewers are told that they may obtain information for accessing stimulus funds for a small fee by credit card. The consumers are then enrolled in a trial membership and later billed for hundreds, sometimes thousands of dollars if they fail to cancel within a certain amount of time. Often the consumer is completely unaware that they are enrolled in the membership program until the charges appear on credit card statements.
Another form of the scam may appear in e-mail messages. Consumers are sent an e-mail stating that they have qualified for a grant. The consumer must then provide their bank account information so that the grant may be deposited directly into their account. The scammers will proceed to drain money out of the victim's account or they may use the victim's personal information to commit identity theft.
To avoid becoming a victim, never open unidentified e-mails or click on links promising free money. If you believe you have fallen victim to a stimulus scam, contact the Consumer Protection Division at 1(800) 432-2310 or report the scam to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at 1(877) 382-4357. Consumers may also visit the FTC's Web site at http://www.ftc.gov/.