Prevention is the best solution for fraud in New York. There are several warning signs that are proven to indicate fraud.
Exaggerated benefits
A product or service that seems too good to be true is often not true. There is usually some kind of big catch like a large upfront fee. “Too good to be true” promises are often the strongest indicators of fraud. Common examples are e-books or Web-based courses that claim to train entrepreneurs to earn instant wealth.
Excessive personal information
An employer, lender or retailer should never ask for too much personal information. This includes financial-related information, such as Social Security numbers and income details, that are not inappropriate for the other person to know. The definition of abuse is the excessive misuse of something. Fraud is a form of abuse that is often the excessive disclosure of your private information.
Unnecessary services
Fraudsters often encourage people to buy unnecessary services. For instance, a company that sells web hosting services may recommend a wide range of additional yet unnecessary services, such as e-newsletters, webinars or website memberships at additional costs.
Excessive expenditures
Monitor the frequency of the expenditures that are being spent. Look for signs of a person’s financial spending that are excessive to his or her normal patterns of spending.
Out-of-character behaviors
Everyone has a normal set of behaviors and actions that involve money. Some people are frugal and set monetary limits that they never exceed every month. Look for unexpected charges on a person’s bank account, such as two or more expensive purchases. Look for a series of withdrawals or electronic payments that were not present on previous monthly statements.
Preventing crime before it happens
Fraud occurs to everyone from individual consumers to small business owners and owners of nonprofit organizations. There are dozens of ways to commit fraud and look for the signs of this crime.