Massachusetts Students and Parents; Beware of Back-to-School Shopping Scams

It won't be long until the retailers load up with back-to-school items. It's hard to believe that we're already talking about the upcoming school year, but it will be here before you know it. Many kids in Massachusetts will be going back-to-school before Labor Day. Labor Day falls on September 7. My daughter, for example, will start the new school year in Pittsfield on August 31.

With the return of the new school year looming, parents and students will soon fill the shopping carts with notebooks, pens, pencils, tape, glue, and a host of school supplies. The unfortunate thing about this is that scammers and fraudsters know this and will be ready to strike. They are out to steal your money and identity, and back-to-school shopping is a perfect opportunity for them to achieve this goal.

The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is urging back-to-school shoppers to be vigilant when the bad guys are looking to take advantage of people's urgency. So what can you do to protect yourself from scammers and fraudsters? One thing is you should shop for those back-to-school items sooner rather than later, as last-minute scams will be swirling. Remember, it's when people run out of time and get desperate that poor decisions are made.

In addition, it's important to stick to businesses and retail websites you know. Chances are you're not going to get scammed if you shop at places like Walmart, Target, the big-name dollar stores, and stores like that. Ditto when it comes to retail websites. Stay away from sites you've never heard of and avoid too good to be true deals. If you are aware of a scam occurring, report it here.