European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 30, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 12 stars and stripes Friday March 30 2007 your Money beware online classified buyers asking Cash Back by Vicki Lee Parker Mcclatchy newspapers last year Rebecca Antonelli Custer tried to sell her daughters 1993 Infinity on Craig list a free online classified advertising ser vice her asking Price was most of the responses asked for More details about the car but one eager buyer offered to Send a certified Check right away Custer agreed to accept within a Day or so a Check arrived in a Fedex package for the Man emailed Custer ask ing her to Deposit the Check in the Bank immediately and explaining that she should give the extra to a shipper who would pick it up the Check was drawn on a Bank of America account at first glance it looked legitimate Custer said but she noticed a few things that made her suspicious there want a perforated Edge like the one you usually see on certified checks that have multiple copies she also noticed that the numbers written on the Check were not embossed another common Fea Ture of a certified Check Custer put the Check aside and waited to see whether the Man would Contact her again he did several times and with each email message he became More impatient then he started calling Custer at Home he apparently got her number from her email tagline she finally told him that she was going to Call the police and he stopped contacting her he kept trying to convince me everything was legitimate said Custer the owner of Triangle per a Raleigh no Public relations firm but i had read enough about internet scams i thought it was a scam Custer was Wise to be cautious according to the North Carolina attorney generals office counterfeit Check scams appear to be on the Rise the scam artists respond to peo ple who have posted items for Sale on legitimate web Sites such As Ebay and Craig list then they offer to buy an item and Send a certified Check for More than the Purchase Price the seller is asked to Deposit the Check and wire Back the difference Consumers who Cash the Check and wire the Money find out later that the Check was fake this scam can cause even More problems As san Francisco Resi Dent Matthew Ninnick found out last year Ninnick tried to Cash a tuesdays Market summary indexes 52 High Low name last net chg Ltd chg chg 52wk chg 1279593 521142 50199 946362 217989 253142 146157 87089 83001 1482876 1068332 413472 38097 770811 180065 201278 121929 71053 66858 1224990 Dow Jones industrials 1246907 1194 Dow Jones transportation 490915 6412 Dow Jones utilities 50281 nose composite 934136 amex Index 216279 Nash a composite 245563 500 143750 Midcap 85528 40 Russell 2000 80894 57 do Wilshire 5000 1456365 10 129 05 07 nose most Active m Mode name last chg Bostons i Motorola Geneles Pfizer Exxon by Psi log forum Hal Lintn s tvs care timeworn 332953 327614 291052 281294 273337 273248 269479 267137 263847 260129 1422 1791 3600 2567 7547 1018 787 3u7 3462 2018 100 09 02 amex most Active name Nash a last chg spor 1105528 ishr2knya 427240 up engy 187229 spend 166566 Prusha Rqn 121836 oils vat 84397 Semi her 78668 Djina diam 78645 Oil Sands in 44777 Goldstro 43842 14320 8002 6064 3602 5250 14755 3426 12436 385 456 19 22 18 21 10 33 15 most Active name vol of last chg Nash loot Sun Micro a Mai Microsoft Cisco Intel Dell Nulf Apple inc Oracle Ebay 1044104 558780 530750 441817 434215 374285 336283 302345 3017 212203 4430 622 249 28j2 2634 1929 2362 9585 1839 3322 key defense stocks Valliant Armor computer general general Harris Allied l3 Lockheed Rockwell Seq corp Texas text Ron United key Mutual funds name Nav Ltd chg ret Fidelity invest Fidelity invest Fidelity spartan Putnam funds a Erlna Amer Century inv Fidelity invest Fidelity invest Fidelity invest aim investments a const fms a aim investments a Charta Dws Scudder cd s Fidelity advisor Fidelity advisor Putnam funds a Globe qty Dws Scudder Fidelity advisor Dws Scudder cd s Putnam funds a Check he received from a buyer on Craig list at Bank of America he was arrested when the Check was found to be fraudulent the charges were eventually dropped and his record expunged but not before Ninnick racked up in Legal fees Bank of America has apologized for the incident but so far has re fused to pay Shinnick Legal fees that could have easily been me Custer said that could easily have been any of us i called Bank of America to find out what Consumers should do if they think they have received a bogus Check Michael Chee a spokesman for the Charlotte no Bank said do not sign or endorse a Check you think is bogus Call the Banks customer representative and explain exactly Why you have concerns about the Check the representative can take the checking account num ber and the routing number and verify the Check if you decide to go to the Bank in person do not take the Check to a Teller instead ask to speak directly with a Bank manager and explain How the Check came into your Possession and Why you suspect that its fraudulent Vicki Lee Parker is a business reporter and financial columnist for the news observer in Raleigh no Exchange rates military rates japanese yen March South korean won March euro costs March Dollar buys March British Pound March commercial rates Bahrain British Canada China Denmark Egypt Pound Hong Kong Hungary Israel Japan Kuwait Norway Philippines Poland saudi Arabia Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey new military Exchange rates Are those available to customers at military Bank ing facilities in the country of issuance for Japan South Korea Germany the Netherlands and the United kingdom for no local currency Exchange rates in purchasing British pounds in Germa Check with your local military Bank ing facility commercial rates Are inter Bank rates provided f9r reference when buying currency All figures Are foreign currencies to one Dollar except for the British Pound which is represented in dollars Pound and the euro which is dollars euro precious metals new York merc close Gold 366210 Silver interest rates prime rate825 discount rate625 Federal funds Market rate 525 3month bill506 30year bond481 sources the associated press Bank of America dented Oil pan May not need replacing dear Tom and Ray i have a 2004 Honda Accord which i recently took to the dealer for the 30000mile service the dealer tells me that my Oil pan underneath the car has a Large Dent though there is no Oil leaking he says that i should spend on getting this re placed asap since otherwise my Oil pressure could drop to Zero i am not sure How big this problem is since there is no leak How urgent is it Why would a Dent affect Oil pressure if the pan is intact thanks Amit Ray Well there Are two ways in which a dented Oil pan can affect your Oil pressure the first is if it actually Breaks then All of your Oil will leak out and youll have no Oil to pressurize Tom but youre fortunate to have a steel Oil pan on this car steel often can survive a Dent As Long As theres no actual crease in the Metal youre probably of in our experience the oilman dents that look like somebody punched them or you ran Over a basketball rarely turn into leak ers later on Ray but the other potential problem is that the Dent itself May be pushing up against and blocking the Oil pickup tube the tube that sucks the Oil out of the Click and Clack Tom and Ray Magliozzi pan and delivers it to the pump sits very close to the Bottom of the pan if the Dent were in just the wrong place it could create a phenomenon called Oil starvation especially at High engine speeds or on Hills Tom that might be Why the dealer is urging you to replace it but if you have some reason not to Trust this dealerships opinion you can always have the engine tested another Mechanic can perform a Complete Oil pressure test for you he can even Jack up each end of the car to simulate going up and Down Hills hell Hook up a gauge to your car then run it at various rpm and see if the pressure meets specifications for All the engine speeds if it does you have nothing to worry about Ray of course if the test deter mines that the Oil pressure is Low youll be out the Cost of the Oil pressure test and a new Oil pan so speak to your dealer again and cask him specifically Why Hes urging you to replace the pan what exactly is he con might happen Thall give you some More information to go on Amit got a question about cars write to Click and Clack in care of this newspaper or email them by visiting the car talk web site at  ends and sensibility Money tip of the Day workplace Power Steps by Marshall Loeb Market watch new York twelve step programs Arent just for battling addiction employment attorney Rich Ard c Busse author of fired Laid off or forced out says that in order to avoid the heart break of being sacked there Are 12 Steps you can follow to build up currency in the workplace follow these suggestions for building workplace Power learn to like the people you work with look for things you can respect in your coworkers you dont want to Send signals that you dont like them communicate often with your supervisor let your Boss know you understand both your role and his never turn Down an invitation if youre asked to join your Boss or coworkers at a social event dont skip it these Are Good networking opportunities and you wont Send any signals that youre too Good do not be afraid to socialize with your Boss consider buying him or her lunch unless says Busse your Boss would be of fended by that gesture socialize with your coworkers of course you dont want to seem like a brow Noser and engender irritation so include your colleagues in such events make your coworkers feel Good about themselves appreciate the work your colleagues do and Praise them publicly never violate a Confidence people gossip in the workplace but aim to make yourself known As the person people can Trust never refuse an assignment if you can help it even if its not in your Job description it never hurts to help out when you can know your supervisors expectations you Are responsible for your work and it is your Job to understand what your Boss wants from you never speak ill of the com Pany even though your office May not be perfect you dont want to be the person badmouthing the company or you risk having your comments parroted Back to you