Fake Bank Scamming Victims Out of Hundreds

A new scam is bilking people looking to rebuild their credit rating out of hundreds of dollars by offering semi-secured credit cards then pocketing their deposits, TheStreet reports. The Treasury has sent a letter to US bank executives and federal and state regulators warning them of the scam, run by an outfit named Freedom Gold Club, which claims to be associated with a bank called Freedom 1st National Bank—which doesn't exist—and also sometimes Credit One Bank, N.A., which does exist but isn't actually involved.

Freedom Gold Club contacts people by mail, offering them the secured cards for a deposit of $500 to $900. When victims send in the money, "the checks are cashed by an individual using the name of Bradford C. Ege II, and the victims never receive the anticipated credit card," says the letter. (More scam stories.)