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Credit, Debit Card Fraud

Credit/debit card fraud is committed when one person

1. fraudulently obtains, takes, signs, uses, sells, buys, or forges someone else's credit or debit card or card information;
2. uses his or her own card with the knowledge that it is revoked or expired or that the account lacks enough money to pay for the items charged; and
3. sells goods or services to someone else with knowledge that the credit or debit card being used was illegally obtained or is being used without authorization.

Identity Theft

Identity theft laws in most states make it a crime to misuse another person's identifying information -- whether personal or financial. Such data (including social security numbers, credit history, and PIN numbers) is often acquired through

1. the offender's unlawful access to information from government and financial entities, or
2. lost or stolen mail, wallets and purses, identification, and credit or debit cards.

Insurance Fraud

Insurance fraud occurs most often when an insured individual or entity makes a false or exaggerated insurance claim, seeking compensation for injuries or losses that were not actually suffered. Insurance fraud can also be committed upon customers, through

1. the sale of unlicensed or bogus insurance coverage to unsuspecting clients, or
2. an insurance broker or agent's diversion or theft of insurance premiums paid by clients.

Pyramid Schemes

Pyramid schemes are a criminal form of investment fraud in which a large return on a small amount of money is promised, if the initial investor convinces new recruits to invest their own money in turn. The "pyramid" is built on the belief that others will continue to add their own money into the scheme. But once additional investors become scarce, the pyramid collapses and large amounts of money can be lost. Increasingly, pyramid schemes are conducted via the Internet and e-mail.

Securities Fraud

Securities fraud can be committed when

1. a corporate officer or director makes a material misrepresentation, withholding, or distortion related to stock information (usually pertaining to value),
2. an officer or director unlawfully discloses confidential information related to a stock, and
3. an individual or entity acts upon the unlawful disclosure of certain confidential stock information.

Securities fraud is usually governed by both federal and state law, and legal action can be initiated by private investors, or by a government agency such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Tax Evasion

Tax evasion, tax fraud laws make it a federal or state crime to purposefully avoid the payment of federal, state, or local taxes, whether those taxes are a personal obligation or that of a business entity. A tax evasion, tax fraud conviction can result in penalties such as fines, incarceration, and asset forfeiture.

Telemarketing Fraud

Laws related to telemarketing fraud commonly pertain to various deceptive schemes directed at consumers via unsolicited telephone calls, promising prize winnings and large cash windfalls that are non-existent or fraudulent. Telemarketing fraud schemes are often targeted toward the elderly.

Wire Fraud

Wire fraud crimes refer broadly to any fraudulent or deceitful scheme to secure money or property, committed or aided through the use of interstate "wires" -- meaning television, radio, telephone, or computer modem. Almost all instances of wire fraud are considered federal crimes, due to their potential interstate effects.

Forgery

The crime of forgery generally refers to the making of a fake document, the changing of an existing document, or the making of a signature without authorization. Documents that can be the object of forgery include contracts, identification cards, and legal certificates. Most states require that forgery be done with the intent to commit fraud or theft, larceny.

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