As criminal defense attorneys in Las Vegas, the Potter Criminal Defense team learns of new methods that honest citizens are defrauded in Las Vegas. This informative article deals with a Realtor scam as well as cyber stalking.
PRLog - Aug 23, 2013 - LAS VEGAS -- New Scam Targets Homeowners who are Selling
Las Vegas homeowners who have their property on the market should be aware of a new real estate scam. It involves two people posing as a Realtor® and prospective buyer in an effort to rob individuals of their personal property.
The way it works is this. The individual who is posing as a real estate agent will call the listing agent for a piece of property and request to show it. This person will claim to be from out of town, and then proceed to give the name and license number of an actual Realtor®. He or she will also claim to have an interested party in tow, and since the two of them are from some distance away, this creates a sense of urgency in showing the home.
The listing agent will normally give up the keys to the property, or notify the homeowner of a pending visit. Once the pair gain entry, they then pilfer valuable items such as jewelry, cash and even credit cards before disappearing. Homeowners may not even know they have been robbed until suspicious items begin appearing on their credit card statement some time later.
In order to protect themselves from this scam, individuals should always ask for identification whenever a Realtor® they are unfamiliar with asks to show the home. They should also accompany visitors from room to room rather than allow them to roam through the house at their leisure. It can also be a good idea to keep valuable items locked up, preferably in a safe that is well out of sight. Finally, any photographs posted online should not show valuable items in plain view, as this could cause that house to become a target.
http://pottercriminaldefense.com/practice-areas/embezzlement/
Surprising Revelation-Cyber Stalking is Surprisingly Easy
Online privacy is a major concern these days, and some people could be giving out more information than they anticipated simply by posting pictures online. By taking photos with a smartphone, you could be giving up your location to would-be stalkers who can this use this data to track you down.
The same GPS-enabling technology that allows you to access maps from your phone is also used to track the location of it at any given time. As a result, whenever you take a picture with a smartphone, this information is embedded inside the photograph, and can be surprisingly easy to access.
There are a number of browser add-ons that are free to download, and will convert the GPS data from a photograph into a map of that location. Stalkers can then see exactly where the picture was taken-even detailing the exact room of a house in many instances. They will have a map that details turn-by-turn directions, and even a satellite image of the location as well.
In order to ensure stalkers can’t track you via online pictures, you’ll need to turn off the GPS feature for your camera’s phone. On most smartphones, this can be done by going to settings, and then manually disabling this feature for your camera. Once you do this, information about where a picture was taken will no longer be available.
Since this data will still be available on previously-published pictures, your best bet is to either remove them from social networking profiles or change your privacy settings so that only those on your friends list are able to see them. Before allowing others to take your picture with their camera, ask them to disable their GPS locator as well.
http://pottercriminaldefense.com/practice-areas/internet-crimes/
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New Scams and Stalking Methods to be Aware of
August 23, 2013 at 14:37 PM EDT
