September 06, National Association of Securities Dealers — Advance−fee scams target non−U.S. investors. The National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) is issuing an alert to warn non−U.S. investors that scammers are using fraud −− including phony rregulator Websites and fake identities −− to separate investors from their money. The scam generally begins with a phone call offering to pay an enticingly high price to buy shares of stock an
investor owns that are virtually worthless (sometimes referred to as non−performing"). To build legitimacy, the caller refers the investor to a phony Website that contains investor protection information, or poses as a legitimate securities professional or regulator. To take the "deal," the investor is asked to send a fee in advance to pay for their services. Once the money is sent, the investor never sees it, or any of the money from the deal, again. Because it is very difficult for regulators and law enforcement agencies to recover any losses from these "advance fee" scams, the best defense is to avoid being defrauded in the first place. This alert describes real−life tactics of recent advance−fee scams and offers tips on how to avoid becoming a victim, such as using NASD's BrokerCheck to check out the caller, as well as where to turn for legitimate help and advice.

Source: http://www.nasd.com/web/idcplg?IdcSe...ET_PAGE&ssDocN