Cleveland BBB October newsletter

1. MarketMonitor
the News for Better Business Bureau Accredited Businesses
This One’s For You
BBB Campaigns Promote Value Of BBB Accreditation and Services
Your BBB is proud to promote the BBB Accredited Businesses who have taken the extra steps
to assure consumers that they are a business that can be trusted.
Maybe you have heard one of the two BBB radio spots airing on a few of the local Clear
Channel Radio Stations? Or caught a glimpse of one of the two BBB Branded RTA Buses?
Have you seen a BBB co-branded billboard on your morning
commute? Or maybe you have seen our “Screened – Approved
– Monitored” print ad in one of the area’s community publications?
If your community publishes an annual community directory, take
a look inside – chances are you will find a BBB ad.
Have you seen a BBB promotion on your Facebook feed?
Helping consumers find trustworthy businesses like your
company is just one of the many ways BBB serves our community!
◊
BBB Serving Greater Cleveland October 2014
INSIDE: Fraudulent Online Rental Listings Lure Consumers
‘Tis The Season To Be Generous On Our Radar
B2B Discounts For BBB Businesses ◊ Cyber Risks
◊
Check Out One Of Cleveland’s “HOT” New Venues
Celebrate students and business leaders who embody integrity. Hear riveting
comments from a man who spends his life protecting you from danger. Don’t
miss BBB’s “Celebration of Integrity” on December 4th.
The breakfast event is being held in the 4th floor banquet room at the recently
renovated Ariel International Center (formerly Leff Electric) on E. 40th St., just
a block south of the E. Shoreway.
Take in the spectacular lake and downtown views while enjoying
comments by Stephen Anthony (pictured at right), Special Agent-in-
Charge of Cleveland’s regional FBI office. Hear the FBI’s
perspective on the looming cyber threat and other significant
threats facing northern Ohio.
The event will also feature the popular and inspiring Students
of Integrity Awards presentation, and, for the first time, will
honor special businesspeople whose marketplace conduct and leadership in
promoting ethical business practices have earned them the title “Champions of
Integrity.”
Space is limited. The first two admissions to the breakfast event are free to BBB
Accredited Businesses. Additional admissions are only $20. RSVP now by calling
Mary Hanes at 216-623-8964 x 121.
Have a BBB Blast at our December 4th Event Service to the
Community
Greater Cleveland BBB
Activity Report From
January - September 2014
Reports issued on
companies/charities.................. 942,337
Customer complaints filed............... 6,447
Online Accredited Business Directory
listings viewed......................... 8,035,025
bbb.org/cleveland visits............... 882,379
Advertising review cases initiated...... 278
The Short List
(from Business News Daily)
5 Common Money Mistakes
Businesses Make
Not having enough cash
reserves.
Being plastic dependent.
Mixing personal and
business finances.
Shorting yourself on
compensation.
Not having an organized
accounts receivable
system.
Seek out industry
professionals to help
guide you through the
labyrinth of the endless
financial pitfalls that
could be looming.

2. Follow Us On:
On Our Radar
Calls from “IRS”
Several local communities have reported a rash
of calls to residents from someone claiming to be
from the IRS. The caller claims you owe back taxes
and, unless they are paid immediately, you will be
arrested. BBB has worked with local media to
publicize this scam.
Government Grant Scams
A young mother of two called BBB to report she has lost $7,000 to a government
grant scam. She received a call announcing she had been selected to receive a
$10,000 grant being awarded to single mothers who wanted to return to school.
She was told to get several Green Dot MoneyPak cards to pay various required
fees. The government does not award grants by phone and does not require the
immediate payment of any fees in order to receive a grant. Real government grants
are posted at grants.gov.
October 2014
Over the past few weeks, BBB Serving Greater Cleveland has received several calls about A1
Realty Home. The business lists several homes available for rent in the Cleveland area.
A Cleveland woman contacted BBB after searching Craigslist for a single home rental property
that would accept pets. She was excited to find several options that seemed perfect and fit her
budget.
The properties were advertised by A1 Realty Home and listed (818) 435-3998 for information.
The woman told BBB, “The man I spoke to said his name was ‘Dave Green - Green, like your mon-ey.’
He was a fast talker. He said the house was cheap because it was ‘pre-foreclosed.’ You know,
when you have a pet, you are vulnerable. I could get this house and didn’t have to pay a deposit
for my dog or anything. But he wouldn’t give me the address until I wired $500 to Robero Santos
Jr. in the Philippines. That’s when I started to feel funny about it.”
Advertising phantom properties for sale and/or rent online has become a common scam. Pictures
of homes are often lifted from valid real estate websites and may not even exist in your area. In
the case of A1 Realty Home, BBB found that a home advertised for rent by the business and listed
as located in Cleveland was also advertised for rent in Wilmington, North Carolina by another
unrelated company.
The pictures of the two properties are identical and the description appears to have been slightly
tweaked by A1 Realty Home for the Cleveland ad.
The domain registration for A1 Realty Home’s website, A1RealtyHome.com, originated
in Panama. BBB emailed a request for further information to the company but has
(not suprisingly) not received a response to date.
Fraudulent Online Rental Listings Continue to
Lure Unsuspecting Consumers
Be Sure To Check
Them Out At...
bbb.org/cleveland
USPS Statement
of Ownership
Donating To A
Charity This
Holiday?
®

3. ®
October 2014
‘Tis the Season to be Generous (but Careful!)
The holiday season is approaching, and with
it will come mailings, calls, and other solicitations from
a whole spectrum of charitable organizations. Many
are worthwhile, others less so. Some are outright
scams. How do you recognize trustworthy non-profits?
Unfortunately, a convincing name and persuasive
marketing do not guarantee legitimacy. The US Navy
Veterans Association, a fake charity created by scam
artist Bobby Thompson (real name: John Donald Cody)
was able to bilk donors across the country out of an
estimated $100 million, including nearly $2 million here
in Ohio. The “charity” operated for nearly 8 years until
law enforcement finally caught on. Cody was convicted
by an Ohio jury in 2013 and sentenced to 28 years in
prison. The millions in donations, unfortunately, are long gone and never
reached their supposed veteran beneficiaries.
You can avoid situations like this and find responsible charities by
checking with your BBB at bbb.org/cleveland. Non-profits that participate
in BBB’s charity review program are evaluated against our 20 Standards
for Charity Accountability, and only those organizations that meet all 20
become BBB Accredited Charities. BBB Accreditation ensures that these
charities meet basic standards in:
- How they govern their organization,
- The ways they spend their money,
- The truthfulness of their representations, and
- Their willingness to disclose basic information to the public.
So give yourself the gift of confidence this holiday season and check with
bbb.org/cleveland before you donate!
Your Employees Could be Your Greatest
Cyber Security Risk
October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month. An essential part of
your company’s online security rests with your staff. The National Cyber
Security Alliance provides these tips:
Talk to Your Employees About:
Keeping a clean machine: Your company should have clear rules
for what employees can install and keep on their work computers.
Make sure they understand and abide by these rules. Unknown outside
programs can open security vulnerabilities in your network.
Following good password practices: Making passwords long and strong,
with a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols, along
with changing them routinely and keeping them private are the easiest and most
effective steps your employees can take to protect your data.
When in doubt, throw it out: Employees should know not to open suspicious
links in email, tweets, posts, online ads, messages or attachments – even if they
know the source. Employees should also be instructed about your company’s spam
filters and how to use them to prevent unwanted, harmful email.
Backing up their work: Whether you set your employees’ computers to backup
automatically or ask that they do it themselves, employees should be instructed on
their role in protecting their work.
mon-ey.’
know,
listed
slightly
originated
®
NEW! FedEx Shipping - Earn
discounts up to 26% with FedEx on
shipping and office services through
the FedEx Advantage discount
program. It’s free to enroll. Simply
go to: advantagemember.visionary.
com/6920/ to sign up and enter
the passcode 39HF6R (case sensitive).
Pre-Employment Background
Reports - Online criminal checks
for $15.95 each. Other reports also
discounted. Call IntelliCorp at
(800) 539-3717.
Document Shredding - All Ohio
Secure Shred will shred documents on
site for $25/month for one container.
Also, one-time bulk purge for 10
cents/lb. $50 minimum. Call
(330) 659-0840 or
(888) 747-3394.
Phone Service - Easton Telecom
- Rates ranging from 2.5¢ -
3.5¢/minute for long distance
calls, toll-free lines as low as
1.79¢/minute. 5% discount off
most retail services. Contact
Jim Butler at (800) 222-
8122.
Some member discount programs
generate revenue which BBB
reinvests into the organization’s
operations.
B2B Discounts for BBB
Accredited Businesses
Text SCAM
to 24587
Sign Up For Free
BBB Scam Alerts!
There is
no fee to
sign up for
BBB Scam
Alerts,
but your
carrier’s text
messaging
rates do apply.
®
®
®

4. The Market Monitor
Better Business Bureau
2800 Euclid Ave., 4th Fl.
Cleveland, OH 44115-2408
The Market Monitor (ISSN 1085-5122). October 2014. Volume 9 No. 5. Published bimonthly in February, April, June, August, October and December by the Better Business Bureau, Inc. 2800 Euclid Ave., 4th Floor, Cleveland,
OH 44115-2408, Periodicals postage paid at Cleveland, OH. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The Market Monitor, 2800 Euclid Ave., 4th Fl, Cleveland, OH 44115-2408.
Periodicals Postage Paid
October 2014
BBB At Community Events Congratulations to the Winners of
this Fall’s BBB Coloring Contest! We have been on the road attending local business shows
throughout our service area.
You may have seen us at the Chagrin Valley Community Expo,
Berea-Brook Park-Middleburg Heights Biz Expo, Beachwood B2B
Show, or the Rocky River Business Expo.
We’ll also be visiting Strongsville, Parma, Parma Heights, Seven
Hills, Garfield Heights, Brecksville, and Maple Heights.
Elisabeth Corrigan and Sharon Pelagalli of PJ’s Day Spa at the
Rocky River B2B event.
Six year old Kelsey Drab
was awarded First Place
for the 3-7 age category.
Ten year old Annie Koppitch
was awarded First Place in
the 8-11 age category.
Our Facebook fans voted 7
year old Allison Ott as the
winner of People’s Choice
Award.
Each of the three winners
will receive a $50 Visa Gift
Card. The two First Place
winners have also earned
a $50 donation to their
current school’s art
program.
Thank you to all who entered. We hope to receive as many great
works of art for our upcoming Spring BBB Coloring Contest.