Identity Theft Complaints Continue to Top List; Internet Related Fraud Complaints Soar 

This link lists some of the problems buyers and sellers have faced at eBay.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has released its annual report detailing consumer complaints about identity theft and listing the top 10 fraud complaint categories reported by consumers in 2003. For the fourth year in a row, identity theft topped the list, accounting for 42 percent of the complaints lodged in the FTC’s Consumer Sentinel database. The FTC received more than half a million complaints in 2003, up from 404,000 in 2002, and Internet-related complaints accounted for 55 percent of all fraud reports, up from 45 percent in 2002. According to the FTC the top 10 categories of consumer fraud complaints in 2003 include:

• Internet Auctions - 15 percent
  
  
• Shop-at-Home/Catalog Sales - 9 percent
  
  
• Internet Services and Computer Complaints - 6 percent
  
  
• Prizes, Sweepstakes and Lotteries - 5 percent
  
  
• Foreign Money Offers - 4 percent
  
  
• Advance Fee Loans and Credit Protection - 4 percent
  
  
• Telephone Services - 3 percent
  
  
• Business Opportunities and Work-at-Home Plans - 2 percent
  
  
• Magazine Buyers Clubs - 1 percent
  
  
• Office Supplies and Services - 1 percent

• Of the 516,740 complaints received in 2003, 301,835 were complaints about fraud and 214,905 were identity theft reports.
  
  
• Identity theft reports represented 42 percent of all complaints, up from 40 percent in 2002.
  
  
• The major metropolitan areas with the highest per capita rates of consumer fraud reported were Washington, DC; Seattle/Bellevue/Everett, WA; and San Diego, CA. Higher reporting of fraud does not necessarily indicate a higher overall incidence.
  
  
• The major metropolitan areas with the highest per capita rates of ID theft reported were Phoenix/Mesa, AZ; Los Angeles/Long Beach, CA; and Riverside/San Bernardino, CA.

For Buyers and Sellers...                              

Where to Turn for Help

If you have problems during a transaction, try to work them out directly with the seller, buyer or site operator. If that doesn't work, file a complaint with:

• the attorney general's office in your state.
• your county or state consumer protection agency. Check the blue pages of the phone book under county and state government.
• the Better Business Bureau.
• the FTC. File a complaint online at www.ftc.gov or call toll-free 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357).

1. The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop and avoid them. To file a complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, visit www.ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity theft and other fraud-related complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.
2. The Internet Fraud Complaint Center (IFCC) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C). File a Complaint
3. Also check the following Resources for filing fraud complaints (Provided by LinkScan^TM): Where to Complain About Frauds & Scams on the Internet (http://www.elsop.com/wrc/complain.htm)
   
4. econsumer.gov!
   A joint project of consumer protection agencies from 17 nations
   Click on the above link to file a cross-border complaint that will be quickly accessible to multiple government enforcement agencies. The information contained in your complaint will allow the government agencies to spot current fraudulent schemes and help us decide how we might take action. By reporting your complaint you may also help prevent other consumers from having the same problem you experienced.

For a listing of online security software products check the follwing page

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