SCAM ALERT - Consumer Rescue

Scam call center pretending to be Costco Travel ticks cruise ship passengers

Cruise ship passengers tricked out of $6,000 by fake Costco Travel

February 7, 2026February 6, 2026 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

On Black Friday, Shane McCormick called Costco Travel to book four cabins on a Royal Caribbean cruise to Alaska. At least that’s what he thought he was doing. In reality, he dialed the wrong number and instead of Costco Travel he reached a scam call center.

Of course, the man on the other end of the line didn’t alert McCormick of his error. In fact, the call was exactly what the fake Costco Travel agent had been waiting for all day. The bad actor was more than happy to collect $6,000 from his unaware target.

A $1000 unauthorized PayPal transaction, scammers convinced PayPal the charge was authorized

Help! A scammer drained $1,010 from my PayPal account

January 27, 2026January 20, 2026 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Just before the holidays, Jill Eberhardt says scammers hit her PayPal account with a $1,010 unauthorized transaction. Although her bank, Chase, immediately identified the unusual “purchase” from Maple & Mist Café as fraudulent, PayPal disagreed. It determined she had authorized the transaction — and PayPal’s opinion was the only one that mattered.

Eberhardt’s money was gone.

How a $428 Southwest Airlines ticket turned into a $4,500 scam, Southwest Airlines aircraft on the runway

How a $428 Southwest Airlines ticket cost a scam victim $4,500

February 7, 2026November 4, 2025 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

How did a $428 Southwest Airlines ticket end up costing an American Airlines customer in distress $4,500? If you guessed a fake airline call center scam is behind this astounding upsell, you would be right.

Ace Rent a Car scam at the Tampa airport, car rental scams, rental car repair scams

Ace Rent a Car charged a customer $1,400 for damage it already knew about

February 18, 2026October 28, 2025 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Ace Rent a Car at the Tampa airport blindsided Carla Lemker with a $1,400 repair bill after her last rental. Sure that she didn’t cause any damage to the vehicle, Lemker asked the company for proof. That’s when things got really weird.

Fake British Airways agents lurking on the Internet, Scams, scam airline customer service

Fake British Airways charged me $12,516 after a flight cancellation. Help!

February 6, 2026August 31, 2025 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Ron Samborsky and his family were on their way to Europe to board Norwegian Cruise Line’s Breakaway… until they weren’t. After American Airlines canceled their flight and offered no replacement until the next day, the trip was in serious jeopardy.

Then a scammer stepped in to save the day.

Carnival Cruise Line ship at sunset on the sea

How fake Carnival Cruise Line customer service is scamming passengers

November 4, 2025August 9, 2025 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Fake Carnival Cruise Line customer service centers are scamming passengers into giving away their personal information and money. Here’s how to spot these bad actors — and protect your vacation dollars.

Internet romance scams, job scams, scammers everywhere

I fell for an internet romance scam. Can anything be done now?

February 12, 2026April 19, 2025 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

As she searched for a new job, love suddenly was in the air — or so Karen C. thought. But behind the inappropriate emails she received from her recruiter with carefully typed romantic promises lurked a scammer weaving a web of deceit.

Karen couldn’t believe her luck. She thought she had found a dream job and a romantic partner, but the reality was much, much different.

Keto scam alert, scammer calling asking for payment, diet pills, con artist demanding payment

Keto Supplement customer service says I owe big money! What is this scam?

January 30, 2026February 27, 2025 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

There’s a new scam coming to your home phone. Aggressive, fake customer service agents are on duty, demanding payment for Keto supplements you didn’t order.

I learned about this bizarre scam firsthand when a pushy, fast-talking woman called me to deliver an ultimatum. She told me that her company, Keto Supplements, wanted me to pay for the diet pills they’d sent me. If I didn’t give her a valid credit card immediately, she said, I would regret it.

Cruise ship passengers beware, Carnival freedom

These cruise ship passengers say they lost $30,000 to scammers in Nassau

February 22, 2026December 31, 2024 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

A Carnival cruise ship passenger says a beauty shop in Nassau somehow extracted $30,000 from her and her husband during a port stop. They’re the latest victims of the free facial scam to contact me in recent months. But the story she has to tell is much more sinister than the others. She says these bad guys drugged her and then filmed her thanking them and praising their products.

Facebook friends sharing government grants is a scam

Beware the government grant scam! That isn’t your Facebook friend

February 6, 2026December 23, 2024 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Picture it: A Facebook friend messages you with some fabulous information about a free government grant she discovered. It’s definitely not a scam, she excitedly assures you. She knows this for sure because Federal Express just delivered a check right to her front door!

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