Hispanics targeted by Fraudulent Companies

April 16, 2009 by Jennifer Brandt  
Filed under Civic Participation

Rosario Méndez, Hispanic outreach coordinator for the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection in Washington, D.C.,  said that a study by the FTC found that Hispanic consumers are twice as likely to be victims of fraud as non-Hispanic whites. And a new one-day survey of news media found hundreds of advertisements targeted to Hispanics that potentially could violate federal and state laws.

“ We’re looking for new opportunities to educate Latinos before they become victims,” Attorney General Rob McKenna said, “We recognize the advantage of coordinating with partners across all sectors, public, private and nonprofit, to be more effective. It’s a big job and a significant challenge, but together we can make a difference.”

Latinos may fall victim to fraud more often because of:

• Unfamiliarity with contracts, credit and banking systems in the United States;
• Limited literacy and linguistic barriers;
• Lack of knowledge of available services; and
• Reluctance to trust government agencies.

According to the study three out of the top four categories of fraud are related to credit.  Consumers with high levels of debt are more likely to be victims of fraud, because they buy into credit repair scams.   

Two resources that we trust here at Acceso Hispano to help clients fix their credit and help prevent foreclosure on their homes are:

Acorn Housing hotline 888-409-3557

and The National Foundation for Credit Counseling

English hotline 1-800-388-2227 Spanish Hotline 1-800-682-9832

Source: Msnbc.msn.com