Ring in the New Year with Consumer-Savvy Tips!

As you begin the new year, resolve to be a smart consumer who takes time to research companies, protects important documents and follows
the age-old axiom: If it’s too good to be true, it probably is. To get you started, BBB Serving Northern Colorado and Wyoming advises:
• Beware of job offers offering easy money. If you’re in the market for a new job or second job, beware of beware of offers, work-at-home
schemes or business opportunities promising big money for little work and no experience.
• Keep your computer safe. Regularly check for software and operating system updates and patches and keep anti-virus up to date. Don’t open attachments or click on links in emails unless you can confirm they come from trusted sources.
• Never wire money to someone you don’t know. Many schemes – lotteries/sweepstakes, overpayment ruses, grandparent scams, etc. – require you to send money via wire service to make tracing the money and getting your funds back near to impossible.
• Fight ID theft. Always shred paper documents that include sensitive financial data and dispose of computers, cellphones and digital
data safely. Visit bit.ly/19mfDUw for BBB checklists on what to keep and what to shred. Ask BBB for help. File a complaint with BBB at Better Business Bureau Complaints Webpage.
if you have a disagreement with a business or have been ripped off by a scammer. You can also now post consumer reviews!
• Fight fake check fraud. Educate yourself on common types of check fraud and be wary of checks that come with claims that you’ve won the lottery, are eligible for a government grant or have landed a job as a secret shopper.
• Get everything in writing. Don’t just take a business’s word for it. Get verbal agreements in writing to limit miscommunication and misunderstandings between your expectations and what the business delivers.
• Start With Trust®. For more consumer tips and information, visit us at BBB Website.
Luanne Kadlub is the communications editor for BBB Serving Northern Colorado and Wyoming. Contact her at 970-488-2044 or toll free: 800-564-0370 Extrnsion 135, 8020 S. County Road 5, Ste. 100, Fort Collins, CO 80528.