Your Turn

Feb. 4-10 is National Consumer Protection Week, a time federal, state and local government agencies and other consumer advocacy groups take time to encourage consumers to learn more. This year's Consumer Protection Week theme is "Read up and reach out. Be an informed consumer."

At the Office of Consumer Protection, we're proud of the outreach we've done, but we're concerned about a sudden increase in reports of scams involving "foreign" lotteries and counterfeit checks.

Montanans receive official-looking notification that they've won some sort of prize, sweepstakes or lottery. In some cases, the checks are simply fake. In other cases, before the consumer can claim a "prize," he or she must send in money. In still other cases, victims are told they can get an inheritance from a departed relative.

Consumers call the Office of Consumer Protection wondering if a check they've been sent is real or, even worse, asking what do after they have cashed a check, wired all or part of it as they were asked to do, and then found out the check was counterfeit. Ultimately, the consumer is personally responsible for the lost funds and fees.

Here is a sampling of some of the calls the Office of Consumer Protection took in the last few days of January.

n In Powell County, a woman received a check for $4,900 and was instructed to send about $3,000 to a Las Vegas address in an effort to collect a "grant" of even more money. The victim deposited the first check, only to learn that it was bogus. The victim had called the number on the letter more than once to confirm the transactions. Notably, the fake documents stressed to the woman that the notification letter was "very confidential."

n In a very similar scam, a woman called on behalf of her son after he'd received a check in the mail for about $4,900. The man called the phone number on the check and was told to wire $3,100 in order to receive another financial "prize." The man wired the money -- and paid a fee to do it -- before becoming suspicious and contacting Western Union. By that point, the wired money had already been picked up and the man was notified the first check was a fake.

n In Helena, a consumer received notification from a Canadian address that he was the winner of either a new vehicle or about $37,000 in cash. The consumer recognized the letter was a scam. Ironically, this particular pitch asked the consumer to send just $29.99. While the amount is small, it nonetheless goes directly from the consumer into the scam artist's pocket.

These are just a few of the scams we've heard about. While the details and specifics -- sweepstakes awards, foreign lotteries, official-sounding "notifications" -- may change, the scam is the same. Consumers are led to believe they have to spend money to get "prize" money. In addition to money, meantime, the scam artist also has taken the victim's personal information.

In Montana, lawmakers are considering a timely piece of legislation. House Bill 15 funds two outreach specialists in the Office of Consumer Protection. It was drafted at the request of the House Economic Affairs Interim Committee, and it has the support of the banking and credit union industry, insurers, retailers and others. It is sponsored by Rep. Jim Keane, D-Butte.

If legislators approve the bill, the specialists will conduct training across the state, working with senior citizens' groups, community service groups, social services agencies, high schools and colleges, businesses and other government agencies. Our goal is to reach consumers before the scam artists do.

It is troubling to continue to hear stories of Montanans being victimized, especially when public education can teach consumers how to make well-informed decisions, avoid scams, protect their personal information and file a complaint if they're not satisfied. With hope, the legislature will agree that Montana consumers and businesses benefit from better outreach and public education.

Mike McGrath is Montana's Attorney General. Consumers can visit the Montana Consumer Protection web site at www.doj.mt.gov/consumer/consumer or call the Consumer Protection Hotline at (800) 481-6896 or (406) 444-4500 for more information. Information about lottery scams or "foreign" lottery letters is also available from the Montana Lottery at (406) 444-5825 or montanalottery@mail.com