Internet Fraud on the rise…

Monday, April, 7, 2008 by Mel Phillips.

One of my favorite comics, who made a living appearing on “The Ed Sullivan Show” in the 60s was Jackie Vernon, a dead-panned, chubby, funny man who carried a cornet around “in case I get caught in a parade“.  One of the favorite lines he would use for an audience that sat on its hands was, “How about a hand for my new suit.”  So, how about a hand for my new suit???

Let’s kick this new baby off with the Internet fraud that was reported over the weekend in InformationWeek.com .  While we take the Internet for granted with our most personal information, this eye-opening report is guaranteed to make us more cautious.  The Internet fraud loss for 2007 was higher than $239 million.  Gulp!!!

We live in the country that produced the highest number of cybercriminals with 63.2% of the total.  The rest of the top 3 countries:  the U.K. (15.3%) and Nigeria (5.7%).  Measured per 100,000 people, D.C. had the highest cases with 99.10 per 100,000.  E-mail with 73.6% was victimized the most, followed by Web pages (32.7%), phone contact (18%) and postal mail (10.1%).  Men reported larger losses than women with a median of $765 to $552.  The most common type of fraud reported was auction fraud (35.7%) and nondelivery of merchandise (24.9%).  It should be noted however that eBay provides its users with links to the IC3 (Internet Crime Complaint Center) site as part of its anti-fraud efforts…

Other types of fraud reported were confidence fraud, credit/debit card, computer, identity theft and the rest - all under 10%.  All of this should keep us aware of what’s going on out there.  When you do your ordering or banking make sure you see the lock, indicating a secure line and whatever you do, make sure you’re dealing with a reputable source…

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1930]  Building of Steel:   The first steel columns are set for the Empire State Building.  King Kong prepares his visit…
2. 1948]  Some enchanted evening:   Rogers and Hammerstein’s “South Pacific” starring Mary Martin opens on Broadway…
3. 1957]  The Trolley swan song: The last of New York City’s electric trolleys completes its final run from Queens to Manhattan…
4. 1958]  Hit this over:  The Los Angeles Dodgers erect a 42-foot screen in left field at the Coliseum to cut down on home runs, only 250-feet down the line.  The screen won’t stop Frank “Hondo” Howard from clearing it with his bombs.  Over 115,000 fans sat through that exhibition game recently between the Dodgers and Red Sox…
5. 1963]  Diaper duffer:  At the age of 23, Jack Nicklaus becomes the youngest golfer to win the spiffy green jacket at the Masters Tournament…
6. 1967]  Who’s your daddy?:   Tom Donahue begins the progressive a.k.a. AOR (Album Oriented Rock) FM format at KMPX in San Francisco.  Donahue will become known as the ‘Father of FM Radio”… 
7. 1969]  Save Me:  The Dodgers’ Bill Singer is credited with the first official ‘save‘ against the Reds.  Write it down trivia fans…
8. 1970]  An Oscar for The Pilgrim:  John Wayne wins his first and only Oscar for his role in “True Grit” after appearing in over 200 films…
9. 1998]  Filling Sonny’s shoes:  Mary Bono, Sonny’s widow, wins a special election to serve out the remainder of her husband’s congressional term…
10. 2000]  A good Bill:  President Bill Clinton signs the Senior Citizens Freedom to Work Act of 2000 which allows senior citizens to earn money without losing Social Security benefits…

Music Memories:

• 1962]  Stones are formed:  The Rolling Stones are formed when Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Brian Jonesmeet at the Ealing Blues Club in England.  You probably heard of the new alliance between the Stones and YouTube and this is a good example:  ”You Can’t Judge a Book by the Cover“, the first Rolling Stones single…
• 1968]  Number One on this date: ”Honey” - Bobby Goldsboro…1970]  “Let It Be” - Beatles…1974]  “Bennie & the Jets” - Elton John…
• 1985]  Elton lights a candle: Elton John performs “Candle in the Wind” at Farm Aid IV in tribute to Ryan White, a young AIDS patient who dies later that day…

Commentary:

It would be too bad if all people remember Charlton Heston for was his role as president of the NRA because he was one of the best actors produced by Hollywood in this or any era.  Heston, a long-suffering Alzheimer victim was 84 when he passed away over the weekend…Fordham University will honor Vin Scully, the voice of the Dodgers who attended the school and then launched his play-by-play career in Brooklyn.  The honor will be part of WFUVs 60th anniversary bash on April 29th.  Congratulations Vin.  You deserve that honor and many more for being the best play-by-play guy in the business…

One down and years to go…

“Happy Birthday…happy birthday”:

Former Giant RB Tiki Barber and his twin brother Ronde (33), Russell Crowe (44), Jackie Chan (54), Janis Ian (58), John Oates (59), Patricia (Chiffons) Bennett (61), David Frost (69), Francis Ford Coppola (69), Jerry Brown (70), Charlie Thomas of the Drifters (71), Bobby Bare (73), Wayne Rogers (75), James Garner (80), Ravi Shankar (88), Bobby Doerr (90) and R.G. Armstrong (91)…

Timeline Countdown:  Memphis-Kansas in the NCAA Championship game tonight, 12 days until Passover and 26 days until the Kentucky Derby…  

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