The Cable Company

Like me, you’ve probably gotten pretty good at spotting scams. Running this company I’ve had to become fairly proficient at fraud detection. But, something happened earlier this week that was so bizarre I thought it was worth sharing, so you won’t get duped either.

This last Tuesday, someone deposited nearly $13,000 into one of our bank accounts.

Now, we receive funds all the time from all over the globe, so neither the amount nor the deposit garnered much of my attention at the time. The next morning though, when none of my salesmen had “claimed” this payment as being from their clients, I got suspicious. 

Digging a bit deeper I found that something was definitely not right.

This deposit wasn’t an electronic transfer, like virtually all our other transactions. Instead, this was a corporate check from a company we’ve never done business with, and it had been deposited at a local branch of our bank. Those two things set off my warning bells.

Nearly everyone these days has access to some form of electronic payment, which is faster, easier and far more secure, so we rarely even see checks anymore! Besides, checks take forever to get here, require a bunch of manual processing and then we’re forced to wait 10 business days to process the order, just to ensure that the funds clear.

And, of course, there’s always the risk of fraud.

Last thing, having a check deposited directly at a local branch is a major red flag, because our bank doesn’t even have branches in PA! The nearest branch is several states away.

So, here’s what’s really odd about this; the bank automatically deposited it… 

Without an endorsement (aka a signature)!

At this point, you’re probably asking yourself what everyone else here asked me when I told them what was happening: “Do we get to keep the money?”

Sadly, no. The money’s not real. Never was.

Here’s how the scam works: the scammer sends a bogus check to your bank from a legit-looking organization and it gets deposited directly to your account. Then comes a frantic phone call, someone has made a “terrible mistake!” They beg you to send the funds back ASAP before they “get in trouble”! Eager to help, you cut a check or wire the money. All’s well, right? Nope. The check they sent bounces (it was never real, remember?) and then you’ve lost the money you sent them plus the money you thought you received.

If this sounds familiar, it should. This is a variation of one of the many schemes scammers  of all types have been running on the elderly and the incautious for years.

I didn’t fall for it, because I’d seen this before. Two years ago, someone tried this exact same con on us, but they were sloppy. The bank caught them before anything happened.

This time, the scammer was more skilled and the bank didn’t catch them. But, I did. A quick call to the bank, the check was reported as fraudulent and the funds were frozen.

Please be careful out there! Warn your relatives and anyone else who might be at risk. 

Urgency is the scammer’s M.O., so please don’t be a sucker and fall for it!

Wishing you and yours a happy, healthy and safe Holiday Season!

-Jason

Jason Ressler, President
The Cable Company

Founded in 1989, The Cable Company’s sole focus is to help people who love music (and movies) extract maximum performance from their systems. We are the world’s leading authority on system-matching, offering the industry’s widest selection of products and expert advice on which cables, components, and audio products will deliver optimal results for our customers. 

The Cable Company 125 Union Square Dr New Hope, PA 18938