Scam watch

This collection of news stories and links is designed to warn against scams and fraud, and to help readers evaluate businesses and charities. Read about schemes reported locally below.

The list of links to the right offers a variety of online resources for people to research suspected scams and take steps to protect themselves. Check e-mail rumors and offers at Snopes.com. Stop telemarketing calls by adding your phone number to the National Do Not Call registry. Monitor for fraudulent use of your name or resources by getting a free annual credit report from a government-mandated program.

If you suspect you have been a target of a scam, contact your local police or sheriff�s department. A list of department numbers is available at the right.

From the Archives

Be a safe shopper this holiday season - 12/16/2011
The Federal Bureau of Investigation released a list of several tips intended to protect consumers...
Police warn of scam to steal financial information - 10/12/2011
Medford police warn people of a recent major effort by cyber-thieves to steal bank account and...
Scammers use bank as front - 8/30/2011
Erma Layton of Central Point may have been the target of an international crime this weekend.
Satellite TV scammers target Spanish-speaking residents - 3/30/2011
Two White City men are out several hundred dollars after a scam artist set up satellite TV accounts...
Scammers target auto repair shops - 9/6/2010
A variation on a Nigerian wire scam apparently is targeting automobile repair shops in the Medford...
What a shock: Nigerian offer too good to be true - 8/16/2010
Sandra Schell has never been to Nigeria but she recently came perilously close to having an...
E-mail scam uses actual addresses - 7/30/2010
Desperate e-mails that seemed to come from friends and family in need abroad bilked two people out...
Mortgage-payment scam trips up owner - 7/26/2010
WHITE CITY — Saul Cervantes thought he was making a smart financial move by accepting the...
Intended scam victim's suspicions proved true - 7/8/2010
Caught in a lengthy stretch of unemployment with no health insurance, Donna Hanson wanted to...
Woman loses $1,026 in 'grandparents scam' - 6/12/2010
An Ashland woman was the victim of a telephone scam this week when she wired money to help a man...
Local couple bilked in 'mystery shopper' scam - 1/8/2010
A Trail couple lost $3,820 after participating in a "mystery shopper" job, only to find out it was...
Beware of a holiday hoax - 12/20/2009
Recently, I got a telephone call from a charity claiming to represent the "local police department"...
Talent women bamboozled - 9/1/2009
A Talent woman lost $33,000 wiring money to a scam artist she believed was an attorney helping her...