The BBB Eye November 2010

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As much fun as the holidays are, it’s a time when scam artists come out in full force. They know we are feeling generous, which makes it the perfect time to play on our sympathy, kindness and concern for others. So this month, we’re going to give you an update on the latest scams to watch out for.

We will start with our segment, Scam Prevention and What to Do if You Have Been Scammed. Katie Carrol of your BBB and John San Agustin of the El Paso County Sheriff's Office discuss common scams, how to protect yourself from falling victim to one and what to do if you think you have been scammed.

The BBB Eye - Scam Prevention and What to Do if You Have Been Scammed - November 2010




In our next segment, How to Protect Yourself from Skimming, let's join Carol Odell of your BBB and Steve Noblitt from the Colorado Springs Police Department as they talk about the ways thieves can skim your credit card information and ways for you stay vigilant.

The BBB Eye - How to Protect Yourself from Skimming - November 2010




Just goes to show you how careful we all have to be. But other than checking with us at the BBB, where else can we turn if something seems fishy? One organization is the department of regulatory affairs, known as Dora. Katie Carrol of your BBB has a conversation with Chris Line from the Department of Regulatory Agencies about the helpful consumer information available through Dora in our segment, How Dora Can Help Protect Consumers.

The BBB Eye - How Dora Can Help Protect Consumers - November 2010




Another governmental agency that plays a critical role in investigating and stopping scams is the Colorado Springs district attorney’s office. In our segment, Consumer Advice from Your District Attorney, Carol Odell of your BBB and Dan May, the Colorado Springs District Attorney, discuss ways consumers can protect themselves from con artists and scams so they can avoid ever needing the services of the DA's office.

The BBB Eye - Consumer Advice from Your District Attorney - November 2010




In our last segment, How to Help Prevent Identity Theft, Katie Carrol of your BBB learns from Hazel Heckers, a victim's advocate from the Colorado Bureau of Investigations, ways to catch identity theft early and who can help if you have become a victim.

The BBB Eye - How to Help Prevent Identity Theft - November 2010




Here at the BBB, we hear about scams every day. There are the old standbys like the Nigerian letter and lottery/sweepstakes scam and we know you all are savvy about those and don’t respond.

But if you think you may have been the victim of a scam after watching any of these segments, please contact us. We have a staff that mans the phones from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 9:00 a.m. to noon on Friday.  You can tell us your suspicions and if it’s not something we can handle ourselves, we’ll point you in the right direction.

As always the best way we can be of service to you is for you to call us or start with our website www.southerncolorado.bbb.org to look up a company’s report before you make a decision to do business with them. That way you’ll be able to see their rating, complaint history and some business details.

The BBB Eye, our monthly half-hour television program, is produced in conjunction with PPLD TV. Your hosts are Katie Carrol and Carol Odell. It airs on PPLD TV – Comcast channel 17. Click here to watch the complete November show.