Published: May 13, 2008 12:03 am            

Realistic-looking checks coming in the mail to Enid area are just another fraud scheme

You’ve won!

A check comes in the mail claiming a sum of money has been won. All that needs to be done is deposit the check and pay a small fee to collect the rest of the winnings. Then, a notice comes saying the bank account is overdrawn because the check bounced. And, that small fee already is sent off and isn’t coming back.

This is the pattern of a victim of fraud.

More and more people are receiving these kinds of notices or realistic-looking checks in the mail. One such scam showing up in the Enid area recently is a notice from Fidelity Financial Services, of Toronto, Canada, notifying people they have won money in the North American Sweepstakes Lottery.

According to Diana Miller, vice president of operations at Security National Bank, there are several questions a bank will ask if a customer brings in a possibly fraudulent check.

The first question bank personnel will ask is if the customer knows the institution or payee on the check. If the customer doesn’t know the institution or person, the next question is: Why would they be sending you money?

There is a series of questions that come next alerting a bank to a possible fraudulent check.

How was the check delivered? There are many ways checks are delivered, including in a plain envelope or in an overnight package. The next possible questions are: Has the customer played the lottery, or has the customer ever been to the place the check came from? A customer is not likely to win a lottery he or she hasn’t ever played or win from a place he or she has never been.

Miller said most scams follow a regular theme. The notification claims the company has tried to contact the customer several times but was unable to. Then, the letter states this is only a portion of the winnings and if a small sum is paid, usually a government or inheritance tax, the customer will receive the rest of his or her winnings.

If the fee is paid through Western Union or Moneygram, it is not traceable so the perpetrators cannot be tracked down nor can the money be returned, Miller said.

She suggested not calling the number on the notification letter included with the check, but to rather look the company or address up online and call the listing there. If a customer calls the number on the notification, he or she tends to be drawn further into the scam. If a customer comes in with such a check, Miller said she will look up the company and make the call.

She allows a customer to hear the call over speakerphone so they can hear from a third party the check is fraudulent. If the check was a real check, the bank would be able to speak to the institution listed on the check and verify there is a listing of a payment to the payee.

If anyone is in doubt, Miller said to bring the check into a bank to have in checked out. Fake checks can look so real even cashiers have a difficult time telling if they are real. Customers are responsible for checks deposited into their accounts, Miller said, and for any overdraws resulting from a fraudulent check.

Over the past years, Miller said, the occurrence of the public bringing in fraudulent checks from scams has decreased. Miller attributes this decrease to public notifications of scams. Banks often have notifications of scams posted for customers to see. Banks also will include information in mailings about how to protect yourself from scams.

Miller said bank officials meet with organizations to try to educate the public on how to protect themselves from fraud and their private financial information.

“We just try to educate consumers and customers to double check,” she said.

Miller said Security Nation-al Bank works with Oklahoma Bankers Association and the local police to alert the public to scams.