ShawnMosch says
1) You are sent a cashier's check or money order for any reason, asked to cash or deposit it, and then wire any portion of it on to someone. It does not matter if you were sent this check as payment for something you were selling online, or if it was for a deposit on a space you are renting . . . if you are asked to wire any part of it to someone, it is a scam.
2) You get an email saying that you won the lottery. You cannot win the lottery unless you buy a ticket.
3) You get a job offer to be a secret shopper or mystery shopper via email. While there are legit secret shopper and mystery shopper companies out there, the clear sign that it is a scam is that they contact you via email and hire you with no formal interview process. Often you will be asked to evaluate the customer service at a money wiring service.
4) You get a message from a friend through a social networking site saying that they need you to wire them money. Scammers will hack into people's social networking sites and send messages to their friends with stories of all sorts telling them that they need money. Because it comes through the social networking site and it looks like it is from a friend, people believe it.
5) You get an email that your account at a business you use will be shut down in a short amount of time if you do not respond to the email with your account details. If you are in doubt about your account with a company, look up that company's phone number and call it as speak to a customer service person . . . do not click on the link in the email.
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