Minnesota Opinion: Here’s a new weapon to fight scam fraud

Forum News Service
Here’s a new weapon in the war against scams - one that local residents should know about and use to save them from getting ripped off down the road.
The Better Business Bureau reported (recently_) that it’s introducing BBB Scam Tracker, a new online tool that allows consumers and businesses to report instances of fraud they’ve encountered and stay up-to-date on scams targeting their area.
“We believe BBB Scam Tracker will be quite popular and prove to be extremely helpful to both consumers and business owners,” said Dana Badgerow, president and CEO of BBB of Minnesota and North Dakota. “In addition, this greatly expands our window to the world as far as schemes targeting other regions and things we need to be monitoring closely.”
Scams, rip-offs and shady dealings are a common occurrence in the police and sheriff blotters.
Just last week, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and Osakis Police Department warned of a phone scam perpetrated by someone claiming to be from the IRS who demanded payment on a debt.
New strategies for combating these kinds of problems are good news. Here’s how the BBB’s latest effort works:
Whether you’ve been the victim of a fraudulent scheme, wish to report a suspect offer or are simply curious about scams targeting a particular area, you can do so by visiting www.bbb.org/scamtracker .
The website will give you the option of filing a report or learning about scams or suspicious activity other people in the area have reported to Better Business Bureau.
BBB staffers review all submissions to the site in order to watch for patterns of a problem and ensure the submissions are authentic.
BBB Scam Tracker also gives people the ability to see where scams are occurring nationally and allows them to search for fraudulent activity by keyword or within a certain timeframe.
Even if consumers or business owners don’t fall victim to schemes they’re confronted with, they’re encouraged to file a report through BBB Scam Tracker, which was launched in other markets on a trial basis earlier this year.
Encouraged by the enthusiastic response it received, Better Business Bureau is now offering it across the U.S. and Canada.
In addition, the data collected through these reports will be shared with law enforcement.
And when enough information on the scams and their origins, law enforcement will be able to take action to shut them down.
“Schemes inevitably evolve, and the bogus pitch that falls flat at first can sometimes be tweaked into a spiel that deceives and defrauds many,” Badgerow said. “The quicker we’re made aware of a problem, the faster we can react to make others aware of it.”