HSV Beware – Reshipping Scams – Hot Springs Village People

Reshipping scammers recruit willing or unwilling U.S. citizens (mules) to reship abroad pricey items that are paid for with stolen credit cards.

Reshipping packages are included in a long list of home business scams. This scams works when people are promised considerable sums of money for receiving, repackaging and then mailing merchandise that was originally ordered online and sent to a foreign address. Unknown to the person who agrees to this process that the items in the boxes were purchased using stolen credit cards.

Unwittingly the person working out of their home to reship these packages has become an integral part of a merchandise fencing outfit. Records show this con has cost over hundreds of thousands of dollars to victims. The ads looking for people to do this re-shipping from home continue and people continue to answer them, ignorant of the fraud they are helping to perpetuate.

How Do Reshipping Scams Work?

According to TransUnion, there are different ways used to entice victims into this scam and the scammers prey upon all sorts of individuals.

TransUnion says that one method used is to email job offers. “You’ll suddenly get a message saying so-and-so corporation wants you to become a ‘package processing assistant’ with a large salary, all for the simple task of receiving and shipping packages to different addresses across the world using postage that’s already been paid for by someone else.”

The scammers buy high dollar items such as electronics using stolen credit cards. They send these items to the reshippers who either wittingly or unwittingly help them to ship these products to Russia, Ukraine, Estonia, Lithuania, Romania, and Germany.

Among some of the businesses victimized by these scammers are Amazon, eBay, and other Internet auction sites.

Reshipping scams are also used for identity theft. The scammer collects a victim’s information such as address, social security number, and credit card number.

The United States Postal Service says these criminals are primarily operating from Eastern European countries and Nigeria.

Tips from U.S. Postal Inspectors

“Don’t give out personal information to a person or company you don’t know.

“Be suspicious of any offer that doesn’t pay a regular salary or involves working for an overseas company.

“Check the company with the FTC, Better Business Bureau, or state Attorney General.”

Don’t get involved

TransUnion also says, “if you get involved in a reshipping scam you might be charged with helping to set up the operation yourself, as one method of distributing the postal money orders used for shipping (most often counterfeits themselves) is by using others they’ve contracted through these scams.”