Tag archives: fraud

Senior Scams and the Jackasses Who Perpetrate Them
By Jeff Wing   |   April 23, 2024

Yes – as advertised, this week’s essay is about senior scams and the jackasses who perpetrate them. It’s an info-rich message from an avenging angel in the DA’s office. Her name is Vicki Johnson. For a dozen years, Ms. Johnson – semi-retired Deputy District Attorney – has held her own full retirement in abeyance so […]

Former Montecito Resident Charged with Securities Fraud
By Michael Cox   |   September 12, 2023

It has been seven months since I had the pleasure of sharing my writing with the readers of this newspaper. My debut novel — Montecito — was serialized in these very pages from July of 2022 to February of 2023. As Gwyn Lurie and I expressed in our respective introductions to Chapter One, Montecito, while […]

It’s a Wonderful Life (Really?)
By Rinaldo Brutoco   |   May 28, 2020

The American Film Institute honored Frank Capra by selecting his movie It’s A Wonderful Life as the Most Inspirational Film of all time. It was a great pick. Not only has it become a “Christmas Classic” for decades, but Frank Capra is quoted as saying it was his favorite film of all the incredible classics […]

Scams That Prey on Coronavirus Fears
By Patti Teel   |   March 12, 2020

Crooks often use major disasters like fires and floods to exploit people so not surprisingly, scams taking advantage of fears surrounding the coronavirus are popping up. Typically, phishing scams involve sending emails that look like they come from legitimate companies or organizations, such as your bank, utility company or the IRS. The email asks you […]

Recognizing & Avoiding Scams
By Patti Teel   |   February 27, 2020

This week’s Scam Report will focus on Business Email Compromise Scams (BEC), which have tripled in the last three years, resulting in more financial losses than any other fraud type in the U.S. It’s when a fraudster uses a compromised email account to insert himself into a transaction where two parties are exchanging money. The […]