Welcome to the August 9, 2006 edition of the Federal Citizen Information Center's FEDINFO E-letter! These subscription e-letters from Pueblo are sent 6-8 times a year with helpful updates, practical information, and special offers to make your life a little easier. You can always find the latest information on our family of websites: Pueblo.gsa.gov, FirstGov.gov, ConsumerAction.gov, and Kids.gov.
This issue includes:
- Beware of “Vishing”
- Know Before You Go
- Hurricane Season
- A Special Free Offer for FEDINFO Subscribers
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BEWARE OF “VISHING”
Many people are aware of “phishing,” (pronounced: fish-ing) in which e-mail recipients are directed to a fake website seeking their financial details but might not know about a new Internet scam called “vishing,” which is short for “voice phishing.” Vishing uses Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phones instead of a bogus web link to steal financial information.
A recent incident involved customers from Santa Barbara Bank and Trust in California. Internet con artists sent account holders e-mails asking them to telephone the bank. Customers who responded heard a recorded message asking them to enter their account details. A second incident earlier this month involved Paypal customers.
VoIP service providers allow their customers to pick a telephone number that appears to be based elsewhere, so it’s possible for fraudsters to pick a phone number in the same area code and prefix of a major bank despite being physically located somewhere hundreds of miles away in another city or state.
Always remember that a financial institution already has your personal information, so if you get an unsolicited telephone call where someone is asking you to provide or confirm any of your personal information, immediately hang up and call your financial institution.
To learn more about vishing scams, check out:
http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/advice/scams/20060726a1.asp
Learn how to protect your personal information with FCIC’s Consumer Focus at:
http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/cfocus/cfpersonalinfo06/focus.htm
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Before you head out on your next road trip, find out how much you’ll be spending on gas to see if it’s worth the trip. The AAA Fuel Cost Calculator estimates the amount and cost of gas needed by using current gasoline prices from AAA's daily, online Fuel Gauge Report, as well as the latest highway fuel economy ratings from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
At http://www.fuelcostcalculator.com/, you can find out the average cost of gas by region and enter in your trip information to see how much your estimated gas cost would be for both one-way and roundtrip. The site allows you to select your starting location and destination from a list of cities, as well as the make, model, and year of your vehicle.
For tips on saving gas, check out:
http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/drive.shtml
But watch out for gas-saving gimmicks:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/autos/aut10.shtm
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Did you know that the peak hurricane season is between July
and September? Learn more about hurricanes at:
http://www.usa.gov/Topics/Weather/Hurricane.shtml
You'll find information about:
- general information about hurricanes
- preparing for hurricanes
- state hurricane information
- what to do after a hurricane
- and more!
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A SPECIAL FREE OFFER FOR FEDINFO SUBSCRIBERS
FCIC is the help desk for everyday life--and we'd like to help you! Here's your chance to get a FREE package of great information about preparing for natural disasters and emergencies as well as recovering from that disaster of a purchase you recently made. You’ll find out how to put together an emergency supply kit and develop a family plan for all kinds of emergencies. The Consumer Action Handbook features general advice and information on how to solve consumer problems, as well as addresses, telephone numbers, and websites where you can file consumer complaints.
To get your FREE package and a FREE Consumer Information Catalog listing more than 200 valuable consumer publications, just fill in your name and address on our special order form.
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Many consumers are now using SPAM-blocking software or junk-mail filters offered by their email providers. These filters may also prevent you from receiving e-letters that you have subscribed to like FEDINFO. If you are using these filters, you may want to consider adding the following e-mail address to your "safe list:" cic.info@gsa.gov
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We hope that you have found this e-letter valuable. If you have any comments, questions or suggestions, please contact us at: http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/emailus.htm. PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE.
Click here for previous issues of the FEDINFO E-letter.
This e-mail was sent to you because you signed up to receive updates, notifications of new information, and special offers from the Federal Citizen Information Center. You may leave the list at any time by visiting http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/maillist.htm.
Issue 2006-4