Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan says once you have been scammed, that money is likely gone. (Photo courtesy Facebook/LisaMadigan)

By Jim Anderson/Illinois Radio Network 

CHICAGO – The Illinois attorney general and the Better Business Bureau are warning against scams.

“Scam artists are proliferating in our society today. I’ve been doing this for 28 years and it keeps increasing every year, the sophistication of them keeps increasing, and the money, the monetary amount, is increasing as well,” said Steve Bernas, president of the Better Business Bureau of Chicago and Northern Illinois.

He says the scams are often over the phone, sometimes on the internet, and they involve trying to get people to wire money, to act immediately, to pay up-front fees, or to give up their credit card number.

Advice: If a stranger calls with a fishy tale, be suspicious. If the caller purports to be from your bank or credit card company, or the IRS, or the jury commission, hang up and call that institution back with a number you looked up, and ask if they’re trying to contact you.

You can complain to the Better Business Bureau, the attorney general or the police, but Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said once you’ve been scammed, the money is gone and is not coming back.

Madigan and Bernas spoke at a press conference in Chicago Thursday to mark national consumer protection week.