Over the past few years, government agencies, whether city, state or federal, have significantly increased online access to acquire licenses, permits, passes and the like. Not surprisingly, scams associated with acquiring such items have increased commensurately. What can folks do to ensure they’re not being ripped off?
To clarify what we are talking about, here’s an example: Consider the Global Entry program for international travelers, which expedites clearance upon arrival in the U.S. Using a commercial web search, such as Google or Bing, it’s easy to stumble across official-looking websites promising to process your application for the program. After all, purveyors of these schemes can pay to show up high in such searches. The catch: The cost is at least $280. Applying directly on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security site, at ttp.cbp.dhs.gov, offers the same services for only $100.
There really is no special benefit to paying $280 versus $100. You won’t get approved any faster, and the process is strikingly similar. In most cases, applicants are put through the correct process, so it’s not necessarily a scam. You are getting something for your money, but it’s at almost triple the cost.
In an increasing number of cases, however, folks aren’t even getting their applications processed, which is, of course, a complete fraud.
Such cons are targeted at businesses as well as individuals. Looking to register with the U.S. government’s System for Award Management to be eligible for federal contracts? Registration for SAM is free at sam.gov. While it can be tedious, any competent business can complete its own registration. But commercial web searches turn up a multitude of websites that will charge you anywhere from $100 to as much as $500 to register your business.
Is this a scam? In this case, you’re getting what you wanted for a price that is disclosed upfront. And some businesses might prefer to pay a few hundred dollars rather than spend a few hours to do it themselves. Further, anecdotal evidence suggests that, unlike the Global Entry example, most of these sites actually follow through and complete your registration. Still, while what these sites offer may not technically be a scam, they sure do not seem like good-faith transactions.
The list goes on, and while targets are mostly federal agencies, city and state organizations are also targeted. This is one case where “lucky you live Hawaii” applies; due to our relatively small population, scammers don’t specifically focus on us.
How do we avoid scams? First, pay attention to the URL of the website. Virtually every official government site URL ends in “.gov.” If the site you’re looking at doesn’t, dig a little further. If the “gov” is obfuscated, as in somethinggov.com, that’s a sure warning sign.
Also, do a bit of research before pulling the trigger. That way, you’ll know what to expect. In the Global Entry example, for instance, there are a number of news and travel advice websites that tell you the cost to apply for the program is $100.
Finally, if you’re met with a hard-sell approach — such as “Price only good for the next two hours!” or “Don’t leave now, you will lose your chance!” — that’s a big red flag. Typically, legitimate government sites won’t hard-sell you anything.
John Agsalud is an IT expert with more than 25 years of information technology experience in Hawaii and around the world. He can be reached at jagsalud@live.com.
