Scam centers on bogus life insurance claims

TRIAD — A scam making the rounds locally involves an insurance angle, consumer advocates warn.

A letter purporting to be from an attorney says that the recipient can make millions of dollars through an unclaimed life insurance policy of someone who had no will, and that no heirs have claimed the fortune. The letter says the attorney will help secure a claim in return for a percentage of the proceeds.

The letter is a scam seeking to get the letter recipient's personal information and financial files as part of the supposed transaction.

The insurance letter is a variation of a phishing scam designed to trick people into revealing personal information about themselves, said Lechelle Yates, director of communications with the Better Business Bureau of Central and Northwest North Carolina.

"The writer behind this letter is not a lawyer — it's a scammer," Yates said. "That life insurance policy — it doesn't exist at all. If you contact them, they'll try to get your personal and financial information, like your Social Security or bank account numbers and take your identity, your money or both."

People should be extremely skeptical of lucrative offers that come unsolicited.

"Your best protection is to never send information to a stranger, no matter how big the potential payoff," Yates said.

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Consumer advocate contact The Better Business Bureau of Central and Northwest North Carolina serves as a clearinghouse for consumer information. For more information, call the BBB local office in Greensboro at 336-852-4240 or check the website www.bbb.org.