Money is a part of our everyday living. Who doesn’t need money? When paying bills, purchasing a property, or when traveling – despite its denomination or currency, money is needed.
Nowadays, it’s not surprising to know that a person or a group of people are taking advantage of the increasing need for money. They make a living through fraudulent or scamming activities just to get your money or even bank information. And this happens mostly on the internet or social media.
This article aims your awareness to spare you from becoming a scam victim.
They’re not interested in your credit history
This is a very obvious deed of a scammer. Credit history is always a part of the credit checking done by a bank of a financing institution. Remember, when applying for cash loans, a financing company with a legitimate source of funds will not put their money at risk so they will always be interested in knowing your credit history before any approval is done.
Here are some sample advertisements of online financing companies that set off red flags in your mind:
- “Bad credit? No problem!”
- “You deserve a loan regardless of your credit!”
While there are really some legitimate and trustworthy companies online that offer loans to borrowers with a bad credit, they will still require a credit check in the process – fake lenders will not.
Unregistered lenders
In developed countries such as the United States, financing institutions and lenders are required to register the business in every state before it can be operational. If you’re having doubts about the legitimacy of a company, you can call your Department of Banking or Financial Regulation or even the state Attorney General’s Office to verify thebusiness registration with your lender. This move will help you filter out bogus companies and scammers.
For added value, it’s good also to verify with the Better Business Bureau to check the lender’s BBB rating.
An ATM card/ Debit card is required
Are you being asked to provide a prepaid debit card as a collateral or for payment of fees or insurance? Uh oh, no.
You shouldn’t be asked to pay fees outright when applying for personal loans. Most often, fees will be deducted from the net loan proceeds they will give you. If they ask for a card and you will give it, chances are you’ll instantly be scammed. So walk away from that transaction when you’ve been required.
Their website is not secured
Check their websites for some security features: a padlock icon should appear somewhere on the pages that you are asked to type in personal information. Don’t ignore any warning pop-up messages that say security certificate has expired.
Pay attention to the URLs you click. If the site address doesn’t show “https” at the beginning, don’t continue transacting. That “s” letter at the last means secure. Scammers refuse to pay to keep their sites safe, that’s why it’s not indicated on their website.
Wiring Money
Lastly, never believe a transaction who asks you to make a payment for processing your loan via direct payment or through wiring. Do not believe for you are most likely transacting with a scammer!
The United States Government implements a strict mail fraud laws that can put scammers jailed for up to 20 years if they communicate via telephone or U.S. mail to commit their crime. That’s why they prefer to use wiring methods to steal cash. The most common are wiring through Money Pak or Western Union. This is ideal for them since wiring money makes it extremely difficult to trace the transaction.
Scammers mostly victimized older clients and those with bad credits. It’s because of the ignorance of the modern way of dealing money for the old ones and a desperate move for those with a bad credit. But don’t be fooled and be skeptical of any loan offers you receive. These bad guys will do everything to make their transactions look legitimate.
But don’t let them affect other legitimate companies in general. There are still those trustworthy and reputable lenders around who are good to deal with.
