Mainer reports e-mail ‘fraud alert’ scam

ALEXANDER – A savvy consumer could not figure out why electronics retailer Best Buy had sent her a “fraud alert” about her online order.

After all, Shirley McCall of Alexander hadn’t bought anything from the store’s Web site.

It turned out to be a scam – a big scam – and now she wants to alert others to the problem.

Officials at Best Buy confirmed Thursday that such e-mails are a hoax and said they had received complaints from all over the country. The retailer, based in Minnesota, has a nationwide group of retail stores as well as its BestBuy.com online service.

McCall said that when she returned home Wednesday night she downloaded her e-mail and found one that said, “BestBuy Order … Fraud Alert.”

The message from a “Vanni Okan” said that Best Buy had received a credit card order from McCall on June 17.

According to the e-mail, McCall had ordered two CD players for $775.30 – something she knew she had not done.

The message went on to say that the company’s “fraud department” was suspicious of the order because it had an unverified shipping address. The message then provided McCall with a Staten Island, N.Y., address.

The e-mail directed her to a special “fraud department” page at the company’s Web site and told her that she would be able to either confirm or decline the transaction. It was not the company’s Web site.

McCall said the request for her personal information made her suspicious – especially after it asked her to confirm her credit card and Social Security numbers, even though she was declining the order.

“The way it is worded, in order for them to ‘access your records’ and take this off your credit card, you’ve got to give them your credit card number and Social Security number,” she said Thursday.

When she attempted to back out of the Web page, it would not allow her to do so. She said she finally had to shut off her computer to escape the Web site.

McCall called her credit card company, which told her it had received similar calls from other consumers. It directed her to notify police and the media.

Best Buy is aware of the scam. A call to its headquarters Thursday led to a recorded message: “That e-mail, which is requesting personal information, is not from Best Buy and we urge you not to provide information in response to it. We are currently investigating and working to resolve the situation,” the message said.

The message directs customers who may have given out personal information to contact their bank or credit card companies.

A spokeswoman said the company has learned that the e-mail had been sent out nationwide. The company also has posted an alert on its Web site.

A call to the state Attorney General’s Office can help identify similar scams. The call leads to a telephone message that directs people to the Consumer Protection Division: (800) 436-2131.

Last month, the Attorney General’s Office worked with other agencies including the Area Agencies on Aging, Legal Services for the Elderly and TRIAD, a nationwide program that depends on local partnerships between seniors and law enforcement to unveil a program for senior citizens.

The Check it Out program offers a toll-free number that seniors can use to check on offers that seem too good to be true. The number is (877) 353-3771.

Carol Higgins, spokeswoman for Eastern Agency on Aging, said the Check it Out program is for seniors, but that anyone who calls the 877 number will be referred to the proper authorities.