BEYONDSUMMITSTORE

Cyber Crime & Fraud

Protect yourself against Cybercrime and Fraud Scams. Cybercrime and fraud scams are a real and growing issue. Without knowing the facts, anyone, at any age, can easily become a victim of one of these often-costly scams. At Beyond Summit, LLC owner of “Beyond Summit Store”, your safety and protection are incredibly important to us. We have a team of professionals working to stop these scams from becoming successful. However, since many scams begin, and can even take place entirely, outside of our stores, we’ve put together the following tips and resources to help keep you safe. If you have fallen prey to a scam: Types of scams. Gift card fraud scams. Most gift card fraud happens when a scammer, pretending to be a family member or reputable entity (like the IRS, Social Security Administration, etc.), calls a consumer and asks them to pay taxes, hospital bills, bail or even utility bills with gift cards from well-known retail brands. Scammers may also impersonate a salesperson and request payment for things such as a car, boat or vacation via gift cards. Similarly, romance scams happen when a scammer pretends to form a romantic relationship with their intended victim, often via a dating app, messaging site, or a series of phone calls before asking for money in the form of gift cards. These scammers typically claim to be overseas and in need of urgent financial help. Another form of gift card fraud happens when a criminal offers a high-value gift card via a website advertisement, email or text message. The scam directs consumers to a website that requires them to make purchases, provide personal information, and/or fulfill other conditions in order to receive the gift card. Once the conditions are met, the consumer may never receive the gift card or may have spent more than the value of the gift card. At Beyond Summit Store, customers will see signs posted on our gift card display racks and warnings on the credit card readers at the checkout counters that are automatically prompted when they purchase gift cards above a certain increment. The notice includes information around gift card scams that a customer must read and agree that they are aware of before finalizing their purchase. We have also started to print information on the back of gift cards warning customers to never use a Beyond Summit Store Gift Card for payment outside of Beyond Summit Store. Additionally, employees undergo special training to help them spot customers who may be falling victim to a scam, and Beyond Summit Store has reduced the gift card purchase limits. Remember: Tech support scams. Well-known companies can be the target of tech-support scams, a type of crime where a criminal pretends to be affiliated with a reputable tech support company (like Beyond Summit, LLC or Microsoft). While impersonating a seemingly trustworthy entity or company, fraudsters then contact an individual via a phone call, email, text message or pop-up window. The criminal will claim that the person’s computer is infected with malware or a virus and will manipulate them into giving away access to their device in order to resolve the fake technical issue. When someone falls prey, the scammer has full access to all the information stored on the individual’s device and the opportunity to steal their identity, money, passwords, etc., which can cause significant damage. Like most companies, we generally don’t make unsolicited calls to customers. If you receive a call unexpectedly from an individual claiming to be from Beyond Summit Store, you should treat it with suspicion. To ensure you’re in contact with Beyond Summit Store directly, customers should call us at 1-602-661-8191 or use a contact method found directly on beyondsummitstore.com to ensure it is legitimate. Remember: Phishing is a type of cybercrime that targets individuals by sending an email containing a malicious link or attachment. Phishers lure individuals into providing data such as personal information, banking and credit card details, and passwords. When someone falls prey to this type of scam, it can result in consequences like identity theft or financial loss. Like a phishing scam, smishing, and vishing attacks happen when someone receives a malicious text or phone call to carry out the attack. Remember: Note: A gift card offer may also be the subject of phishing, smishing, and vishing messages. Look out for subject lines and messages that tell you to click on a link to claim your free gift card or that ask you to purchase gift cards on behalf of the message sender. Additional resources. AARP Fraud Watch Network Report Fraud Protecting Kids Online Internal Revenue Service (IRS): Scams Targeting Taxpayers Tips for Safe Gift Card Use: Retail Gift Card Association