When Ed Holloway, store manager at Moffat Paint & Glass in Greeley, took an order from a customer in Aspen to be shipped to Alaska, red flags started rising in a hurry. The order was made via a TTY Relay Operator, most commonly used by the hearing impaired -- and also scammers who hide behind the anonymity it provides.

Holloway’s first thought was “Good gosh, why not order the paint in Alaska?”

Another red flag arose with the amount of Valspar paint ordered -- 60 gallons exterior and 60 gallons interior, about $3,200 in value. To top it off, rather than have the paint sent factory direct, as Holloway recommended, the customer said it needed to be shipped with her courier because “they know us.” On top of the $700 shipping fee was a $100 wiring fee, both of which would need to be paid upfront.

During the transactions, which included three phone conversations, Holloway also received an e-mail -- rife with misspellings and grammatical errors – with the name of a person who presumably owned the credit card to be used. Holloway responded that he would process the order once he had the credit card number and the card verification number on the back of the card.

He never heard back from the customer. But after the last TTY call he did hear back from the operator who told him that she suspected the call was being transferred from Algeria.

That’s when he called the Mountain States BBB to help alert others about the scam. Moffat Paint & Glass has been a BBB member since 1973.

Barbara Read, vice president and communications director at the Mountain States Better Business Bureau, said that Holloway most likely has not heard from the customer because the credit card number was stolen and the scam artist didn’t have the verification code that he requested.

These types of scams, she added, are hitting all kinds of businesses nationwide. The buyer typically makes the purchase with a stolen credit card and wants to have the merchandise shipped out-of-state or to a foreign address.

The Better Business Bureau suggests businesses take the following steps to protect themselves:

• If the customer is using a TTY Relay Operator, ask the customer for his/her full name, address and telephone number.
• Ask the customer to provide the name of the issuing bank and its toll-free customer service number as printed on the back of all credit cards.
• Ask the customer for the three or four digit Card Verification Code that is found near the account number on the back or front of a credit card.
• Tell the buyer that you will check with the bank and call them back. When you do that, keep good notes. Verify all information the buyer gives. If a buyer objects, explain that these procedures are for their protection as well.
• If the caller still objects to providing any of the above information, abandon the conversation and advise that you are not prepared to do business this way.
• If the buyer insists on paying with a certified check, wait until the funds are in your bank account, before shipping the merchandise.

For reports on companies you can trust, as well as additional tips on spotting scams, visit www.mountainstates.bbb.org, or call 970-484-1348.