Don't Fall for the Wal-Mart Check Scam

It’s getting close to the holidays and many are already getting the jump on the shopping season. Unfortunately, scammers are in the holiday spirit too, but with the intention of taking your money.

When it comes to using retail in scams, there are many and most of them involve some type of phishing. One popular one going around again is the Wal-Mart check scam. The details are to follow. First, let’s get to the tips to avoid having this happen to you.

• Wal-Mart will not send you a check in the mail out of the blue for a service you have not performed

• Never enter personal information into a website to “activate” a check or card or to any unsolicited request, especially social security numbers, driver’s license numbers, bank account information, or any other sensitive information

• Things that sound too good to be true, usually are just that. Wal-Mart posted on its website that it does not employ mystery shoppers, so if that is the offer in a letter you receive, it is not real. All employees of the company must go through their employment process which includes drug screenings and a legal paperwork required to be employed in the U.S.

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A potential victim will get a check in the mail, supposedly from Wal-Mart, with a letter saying he or she was selected as a secret shopper, a customer service evaluator, or a quality control specialist. Other terms may be used, but none are legitimate. The check is for a reasonable amount; somewhere around $2,000, making it an attractive bit of bait, especially just before the holiday shopping season gets into full swing. However, before the check can be deposited, it must be activated.

The victim is instructed to go to a website identified in the letter and put in a social security number, driver’s license number, and other details. Once they are entered, the details are headed off to the north pole of fraudsters and will not result in any holiday cheer for the victim.

Instead, the check bounces, possibly leaving the account dry. On top of that, the scammer may even have bank account information which is emptied shortly thereafter of anything leftover.

These types of scams and many others that will creep up during the holiday shopping season are not limited to Wal-Mart. Any retail organization may show up named in these, so watch for them.  Don’t let scammers take the jingle out of your bells this season.