According to local police officials, credit card crimes have risen in the Fuquay-Varina area. Police warn residents to be on the lookout for credit card fraud and other types of scams.
While Fuquay-Varina police officials have seen local residents fall victim to money frauds, scams and check frauds, they said the biggest type of fraud has involved credit cards.
“Credit card fraud seems to be a big issue,” Fuquay-Varina Public Information Officer Susan Weis said. “Credit cards get targeted via the Internet. The actual crime of compromising the credit card takes place somewhere else sometimes as far away as Africa, but the victims live in Fuquay-Varina.”
Police officials offered several simple tips residents should follow as not to fall victim to credit card fraud. For one, monitor credit card and bank accounts every single day.
Officials also encourage residents to set up a fraud alert through email.
“Have email alerts set up with your credit card company to alert you electronically when credit card transactions have occurred on your account,” Weis said. “This way, you know if you used the credit card or it’s being compromised.”
Police also remind residents to know about where they are ordering from.
“Make sure that you are using your credit card at a legitimate store or Internet site,” Weis said. “Make sure the Internet site you are using is secure. You can tell this because it will have https: at the beginning of the page where you give your credit card information.”
Although credit card fraud is on the rise in the area, it is not the only type of fraud taking place. Another area residents need to avoid is repackaging sending jobs.
“People find repackage sending jobs on Craig’s List and other sites,” Weis said. “The job pays them to re-package something and send it, generally, out of the country. The people that sign up for these jobs are looking for quick money from a one-time job but what happens is that packages keep coming to their homes, sometimes 30 to 50 per day, to be repackaged and sent overseas.
“This is when most decide they have gotten in over their heads and call the police for help. The original packages are generally purchased with compromised credit cards and sent through a person to repackage so that they can’t be traced back to the actual criminal.”
Police officials also encourage residents to be on the lookout for two types of counterfeit bills. The two types of counterfeit bills are printed and washed.
“The washed bills are when people take low denomination bills such as $1 and bleach them and reprint them at a higher amount ($100),” Weis said. “The bills can defeat a counterfeit pen because the paper composite is what the government makes money out of.”
If you feel you have been a victim of a fraud or a scam, contact the Fuquay-Varina Police Department at 919-552-3191.