This week, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody highlighted scams that can arise during the summer months as consumers travel, move and undertake home-improvement projects.
Moody pointed to seven schemes to be aware of to avoid falling prey.
“We are near the midway point of the summer season. Vacations are coming to an end as families prepare to send students back to school, but don’t count on scammers slowing down. Please keep your guard up and take precautions to avoid falling prey to scams through the remainder of this summer and beyond,” Moody said on Monday.
Below are seven summer scams and tips to help Floridians avoid becoming victims:
1. Vacation Rental Scams
Fake vacation home or hotel offers listed online may require an application fee, security deposit or personal information to reserve. Be sure to do proper research before providing any money or information to potential accommodation hosts.
2. Free Wi-Fi Scams
When traveling, people typically connect to public Wi-Fi to save data. There are a multitude of ways hackers take advantage of public Wi-Fi, but all are easily avoidable if the correct precautions are taken.
3. Front-Desk and Fake-Menu Scams
Travelers should be aware that scammers may impersonate hospitality staff, who call targets at random and claim a credit card payment is being declined. After establishing trust, these fraudsters will ask for confirmation of the credit card number,…
