Hotels are common victims of hacking scams because they can improperly store credit card information making it easy to access. The crash in the economy forced most hotels to abandon the security systems they planned on implementing.

Some scam artists ask targets to send a small fee in order to supposedly process a check for a larger amount that they will receive later. Others ask for targets’ bank account numbers so they can deposit the money, but they really use that information to empty accounts or open new ones.

One grandparent asked “Which grandchild are you?” and the scammer promptly hung up. The other grandparent put the caller on hold and called her real grandchild to verify he was okay.

Since January, the Ohio Attorney General’s Office has received more than 700 complaints involving unsolicited phone calls. Some consumers say callers used high pressure sales tactics, threatened them with harm or continued to call even after being told to stop.

For some job seekers, for-profit colleges are enticing. Such schools often provide technical training or other accelerated degree programs. Unfortunately, some for-profit institutes lack the accreditation and/or funding to fully deliver on their promises, even when students pay in advance.

One consumer paid a company $623 to sell her timeshare. She sent the payment via money order to Florida, and the company said it would send her $15,000 in return. Ultimately, the company never sold her timeshare and never sent her the money.

The Consumer Federation of America (CFA) warns that people selling “add-on” insurance usually are paid a commission or other financial incentive. This business practice can more than double the price of the insurance, because it creates “reverse competition,” in which the seller has insurance companies compete to provide the largest kickback.

The scammer also asked for the recipient’s address before they would deliver the package, but a quick Internet search showed the company had used this ploy to get personal information before.

In March 2010, a Columbus resident reported being targeted by a scammer posing as her grandson, saying he was in Canada and in need of money. The grandma was asked to make a wire transfer to a strange account. She knew her grandson wasn’t in Canada and, realizing it was a scam, she hung up and reported it immediately to the Ohio Attorney General’s office. Similar reports continued throughout the spring and summer.

But when customers go to see the item Amazon.com mistakenly charged them for, they are redirected to a fake site which attempts to steal their personal information.

When targets click on the attached link, they are taken to a webpage that requests they send a video to seven friends. The video countdown clock, however, does not work and the scam tempts impatient users to click on a second link that says: “Cant Be Bothered to Wait? --> Click Here To Skip This.”

Most phishing scams lure consumers into clicking a suspicious link to direct them to a legitimate-looking page. But tabnabbers can just load phony websites directly into an open tab in a browser in order to fool the viewer and capture their private log in and password information.

In the last three years, the Better Business Bureau has received more than 16,000 complaints about debt settlement companies.

The phishing virus, takes the form of an e-mail from NACHA—The Electronic Payments Association. The subject line of the e-mail reads: Unauthorized ACH Transaction. The body of the e-mail states that there has been an unauthorized payment transaction on your bank account and directs you to a website.

Apple released a public statement in which it advised customers to contact their financial institution in the event their credit cards and iTunes passwords were stolen.

District officials confirmed they are not soliciting funds for high school athletics or any other program. If you are solicited, refuse the request and contact the Springfield police at (937) 324-7685. If you see suspicious solicitations for donations, report it to us at (800) 282-0515 or www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/Complaint.

According to a recent report by the nonprofit group Investor Protection Trust, about one-fifth of citizens over age 65 already have been victimized financially, whether through an inappropriate investment, unfair fees or outright fraud.