Nathanael ArnoldGoogle+Twitter Other Famous Apple Employee Departures This WeekSheiresa Ngo April 28 2015 4/4.813 4/4.813 Source: Thinkstock Now that summer is just around the corner you’re in. Regrettably scammers never rest. You could end up with a fake vacation rental if you’re not careful. Websites such as AirbnbVacation Rentals By Owner make finding and booking a holiday home easy, but the simplicity also makes it much easier to get scammed. Internet Crime Reporting CenterInternet Crime Report from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Here are five things to keep in mind if you want to reduce your chances of becoming a victim of a vacation rental scam. 1. Question: Unusually low rates
If a holiday rental deal looks too good to be true, it is most likely. Fraudsters are scanning the web for places that list holiday rentals. It will then copy the summary and photo from an ad and insert their own contact information (the Federal Trade Commission refers to that as a stolen ad). The fraudster would seek to attract tenants by posting rental rates below the market. A very low price will cause you to pause and take a closer look. Before jumping to the deal make sure you investigate thoroughly. Also perform your own web search to see if different people posted similar listings for the same house. 2.
Beware of renting phantoms 4. Don t wire money
Any money request via wire transfer is a sure sign of fraud. There’s never a good reason to wire money to pay a first month’s rent or vacation rental fee for a security deposit payment. That’s valid even though they first give you a contract. Wiring money is the same as sending cash “the FTC claims that once you send it you have no way to get it back.
5. Keep your financial information The scammer could even go a step further and ask you for personal financial information under the pretext of carrying out a regular credit check. Perpetrators can request that you submit a job history and provide your Social Security number to fill out credit applications. Don’t just give the information to anyone who asks for it; always ask such a question. If you believe you might have been the victim of a holiday rental scam, file a report with the online FTC’s Report Assistant. Once you visit ftc.gov/complaint, you can use the complaint wizard and file your claim.
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