Darien Woman Loses Nearly $4K in Email Scam

The following information was provided by Capt. Fred Komm of the Darien Police Department:

Wednesday, March 3

LARCENY/SCAM: A Darien woman told police she was a victim of scam, and "yes she was," said Capt. Komm.

The complainant said she received an email on Feb. 10 from a company by the name of Dow Chemicals, informing the Darien resident that she had been selected as a "secret shopper," and as such, would be allotted necessary funds to make purchases and evaluate the company's job performance. For each evaluation, she would receive $300 compensation, plus travel and meal expenses.

The "first assignment" came two weeks later, in a Feb. 23 email. A check would soon arrive via UPS, she said, which she was directed to cash. A portion of the money—$250—was hers for keeping, and the balance was to be wired through Western Union to a fictitious person in Anchorage, Alaska.

"So she follows the instruction," said Capt. Komm.

Into her personal account went the check for $3,485; with the bank's deposit fee, the transaction cost her $3,700.

"What was the problem with the check? It was counterfeit," said Capt. Komm. "She's out of $3,700."

The Federal Bureau of Investigation offers the following tips to avoid falling victim to employment schemes associated with mystery/secret shopping:

• Do not respond to spam email
• Do not click on links contained within an unsolicited email
• Only open attachments from known senders, as the files may contain viruses
• Avoid filling out forms contained in e-mails that ask for personal information
• Before you click, consider the root of the hyperlink: is it a legitimate site?
• Research the legitimacy of companies hiring mystery shoppers
• No legitimate mystery/secret shopper program will send payment in advance and ask the employee to return the balance
• If you believe you have been scammed, or have information pertaining to mystery/secret shopper scheme, file a complaint at www.IC3.gov