Lyons: Scams arrive the old-fashioned way

<p>No matter how many modern scammers prefer electronic means to entice victims, some still do well with old-school snail mail.</p><p>And why not? There's often something more believable about a document you can hold in your hand, rather than an e-message. That's especially so if the document is supposed to seem to be a public notice sent by a government agency or the like.</p><p>As it happens — and ironically enough — Manatee County just used a Twitter message to warn people about a bogus postcard come-on residents are getting in the mail.</p><p>That mailer gives many the impression it was sent by the county utilities department. The mailer — or so victims are led to believe — is an “Important Water Quality Notice” sent by the “the Water Plant.” It informs us that “The Water Plant will be in the area testing your water,” at no charge, because of possible pollution.</p><p>It gives a phone number to call to arrange for testers to come by at a convenient time. It urges this be done very soon.</p><p>Well, don't. There's no chemical spill or similar issue in your neighborhood.</p><p>“A water scam is afoot,” as the county's Tweet puts it. That mailer “does NOT come from — nor is it affiliated with — MC Utility System.”</p><p>But while the mailed notice is tricky, it technically doesn't lie, I guess. “Water Plant” is not an official name for any government utility, and sneaky fast-talkers who use the name aren't necessarily posing as working for one, arguably. The Water Plant name may invite us to think it came from the people responsible for sending us our water, but the mailer never quite says so.</p><p>Anyone misled into calling no doubt soon finds that someone will indeed show up to do some sort of water test, or pretend to. The residents will then be told they much need an expensive water filtration system, or something of that sort, is my guess.</p><p>Water-filter scammers in general must love the help they get from real news events. That chemical-tank spill that ruined so many people's drinking water a few states north of us must be ideal. Any horrific pollution incident makes fictional scares more believable.</p><p><B>Meanwhile, at the Local Records Office?</b></p><p>Another mailer a reader sent me this week uses an equally misleading not-really-government name. It claims to come from the “Local Records Office.”</p><p>The what?</p><p>That term is sometimes used as a casual reference to the county clerk's office, or maybe some other government agencies that keep official documents. And when capitalized and put atop a letter, the words Local Records Office may look like an official name for some such entity.</p><p>It isn't. An Englewood woman realized that when the “Local Records Office” sent her a letter taking note of a real estate transaction she was involved in.</p><p>The letter urged her to send $89 to get a copy of her deed and a “complete property profile.” The pitch was made more official looking by showing a Tallahassee address for the office — not so local, but there are a lot of records and many government offices there — and also by including information such as the square footage of the woman's property, its assessed value and last purchase date.</p><p>Of course, all of that is easily available in public records. It can be looked up online within seconds.</p><p>That letter relies on readers not reading too carefully, it seems. To avoid legal trouble, perhaps, that Local Records Office letter has a notice saying it “is not associated with any governmental agency.” It even says you can get a copy of your deed by yourself “from the county recorder in the county where your property is located.”</p><p>Yes, and please do so, if you need copies of such records. Eliminating the middleman, and having nothing at all to do with him, is a great idea when the middleman uses a name so very prone to mislead.</p><p>This anti-scam information comes to you from the Division of Baloney Detection, Southwest Florida Regional Office. Stay alert!</p>