ANNAPOLIS, MD (September 24, 2008) - Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot, Attorney General Douglas Gansler and Treasurer Nancy Kopp today joined together to warn Marylanders of scams involving fraudulent checks that appear to be issued by the State of Maryland.

"We want to assure every Marylander that the State is not and will never be involved in any secret-shopper program. These checks are fraudulent and should be reported to the authorities," said Comptroller Franchot. "In these tough economic times, I understand it is exciting to receive an unexpected check in the mail. However, depositing these checks will result in more debt, as the account holder will be responsible for covering the check once it bounces. So we urge Marylanders not to take the bait."

"Citizens should always be wary of unsolicited letters that promise large sums of money or contain checks, especially where the sender asks for any type of payment in return. Persons who receive suspicious letters or letters that appear to be scams should report these matters to the Attorney General's Consumer Protection hotline," said Attorney General Gansler.

Recently, there has been a sharp increase in "secret shopper" and "lottery" scams involving the receipt of a fraudulent check that appears to be issued by the State of Maryland. The scammers mail the potential victim a fraudulent check along with a letter from a fake company, usually with a Canadian address. In one scam, the letter says the victim has been selected to conduct a secret shopping assignment. In the other scam, the letter says the victim has won a lottery prize.

In both scams, the potential victim is directed to deposit the fraudulent check into their bank account and then to immediately wire a portion of the check proceeds to the scammers using Western Union or Money Gram. Please Note - the check will be returned as uncollected because it is counterfeit, and any money wired to the scammers cannot be retrieved.

Marylanders can check the Treasurer's website www.treasurer.state.md.us for the latest alerts regarding scams involving state checks. Anyone with any questions or concerns should call the Attorney General's Consumer Protection hotline number at (410) 528-8662 or toll-free (888) 743-0023.

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Contact: Caron Brace, 410-260-7438 (office); 410-212-9414 (cell)