Last year, more than $10 billion was lost to fraud. With rising financial scams in the United States, Americans want to protect themselves and their money. While there are many types of financial fraud and scams, let’s walk through one of the most prominent and timeless scams: Check Washing Fraud. We will explore what it is, how to avoid it, and what to do if you become a victim.
What is Check Washing Fraud?
Check washing occurs when a thief cashes a check fraudulently. In a check-washing scenario, checks can be stolen from mailboxes and then altered with chemicals or false copies. Postal inspectors recover more than $1 billion in counterfeit checks every year related to this scam. Protecting yourself from check washing fraud takes a few intentional steps.
How Do I Avoid Check Washing Fraud?
Knowing the threat of a financial scheme exists is step one. Step two is to determine how to best set yourself up to avoid this financial fraud in the future. There are a variety of steps to take to prevent check washing fraud.
Retrieve Mail Frequently and Promptly: Ensuring your mail is monitored will reduce your chances of falling victim to this scam.
Hold Mail at Post Office: If you happen to be traveling and not able to retrieve mail frequently and promptly, consider having your mail held at the post office. This keeps any checks you may be expecting safe and secure until you return.
Keep Important Details Off of Checks: Keep phone numbers, social security numbers and other personal information from being displayed on any checks.
Consider Sending Mail via Post Office: To reduce the time checks spend in your personal mailbox unattended, try sending valuable mail through the Post Office to ensure security.
Contact Sender if You Don’t Receive Mail: If you are expecting to get a check and haven’t received it, be sure to contact the sender. This way you can check and see if the check has been cashed or is still out for delivery.
Working to control these elements can help safeguard your finances, your personal information and your identity. In other cases, fraud finds a way. Let’s discuss the steps to take if you become a victim of check washing.
What Happens if I Am a Victim of Check Washing Fraud?
Sometimes fraud happens even with the utmost precautions. If that occurs, we are here to walk you through a couple of steps to take. If you suspect check washing fraud, consider taking these next steps:
- Contact Police: Report the fraudulent behavior
- Contact Your Bank: Request copies of the frauded check
- Contact the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS): Report fraud and follow the steps provided by the USPIS
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