SALT LAKE CITY -
According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), it's Utah, where approximately 35,000 bogus checks are presented at the state's banks and credit unions every month. Of those, approximately half are deposited by Utahns who have been scammed by the bad checks. Not all of the scams originate within the state. Numerous Utahns, for instance, have fallen victim to infamous and ongoing frauds, such as the so-called Nigerian 419 scam, named after the country's phone code.
A task force created to fight the problem and made up of representatives of the state's banks and credit unions has estimated that the average loss for Utahns who fall victim to any of the wide range of scams is approximately $6,000 per person, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. The Financial Fraud Task Force, which includes representatives of 17 different institutions, held a news conference here to highlight the issue. During the news conference Mountain America Credit Union put on display hundreds of checks, postal orders, cashier's checks, travelers checks and more, all of which were fakes, the Tribune reported.
Top 10 States For Fraud Reports
1. Utah
2. Nevada
3. Washington
4. Colorado
5. Alaska
6. Virginia
7. Hawaii
8. Maryland
9. Oregon
10. Arizona
Source: FTC
