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Local resident warns of credit card scam

HUDSON — A local woman nearly became the victim of a scam artist recently.

The Hudson resident, who wishes to remain anonymous, said she received a phone call from a “fast talking man” who claimed the resident had a $6,000 balance on one of her credit cards. He asked her for her credit card number and other personal information, in order to “try and help” her reduce the balance, according to the resident.

The woman didn’t give her information out and later talked with her credit card company. Her balance was actually less than $250 and the person who called was a scam artist.

The older woman said she wanted to let others know of these scams.

“Older people need to be warned. Don’t give out your information,” she said.

According to David Lydon, an investigator with the State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation, there haven’t been any reports of similar calls locally, but these types of scams have occurred on a national level.

Banks and credit card companies have continued to warn consumers against providing personal information to unknown callers. According to Visa, credit card companies do not ask for this type of personal information over the phone.

If you receive a call similar to the one described, report it to the Federal Trade Commission at 877-FTC-HELP and the New York State Attorney General’s Office at 1-800-771-7755. These agencies have the power to prosecute fraudulent telemarketers who operate across state lines.

According to a study released last month by the Identity Theft Resource Center, a nonprofit organization established in 1999, victims of scams are on the rise. The study also delves into the impact of identity theft across the nation in regards to the financial, as well as emotional impacts on the victims.

The study is made up of information garnered by confirmed identity theft victims who worked with the ITRC.

More than half of those polled said their stolen information was used to set up a new line of credit in their name.

The average cost of out-of-pocket expenses for damage done to an existing account was $550.39 and $1,865.27 for new accounts. Victims spent an average of 116 hours repairing the damage done by identity theft to an existing account and an average of 158 hours with new accounts.

Seventy percent of the victims polled indicated that it took up to 12 months to clear issues of all misinformation, up 20 percent from the year before.

Other problems included increases in insurance rates and current credit card interest rates, and criminal records not being cleared.

The emotional impact included stressed family life and feelings of depression.

The survey indicated that average loss in goods and services to businesses was $48,941.

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