What to do if you've been cheated

We really didn't need official confirmation, but we now have it: Scams, schemes and other ways to separate you from your bankroll are on the rise. According to its latest report, the Consumer Sentinel Network -- an online database that compiles consumer complaints received by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Better Business Bureau, Internet Crime Complaint Center, Identity Theft Assistance Center, PhoneBusters, the postal service, and other organizations in the U.S. and Canada -- received over 1.3 million complaints in 2009, and that number is expected to grow as other organizations report in. Identity theft is the most common type of fraud, but it's far from the only kind.

Foreign money and counterfeit check scams; fake prizes, sweepstakes or lotteries; fake business opportunities and work-at-home plans; Internet auctions and other tried-and-true schemes and swindles make the list as well. Financial institutions and services also give rise to consumers' ire, and that's true in good times let alone in today's economic climate. Credit card companies, advance-fee loans, credit protection or repair services, credit bureaus, and banks all come in for their fair (or is it unfair?) share of scorn.

Of course, the best defense against scams and scammers is to not fall prey to them in the first place. You probably already know the drill: Guard your personal information, including (and especially) things like your credit card numbers, bank account numbers and even your social security number. If an offer looks too good to be true, it probably isn't. Etc., etc., etc.

That said, even if you take every safeguard, bad stuff still can happen. If it does, the FTC wants consumers to know that they don't have to take it lying down. The commission is asking those who've been ripped off to let it know directly. To that end, it's established an easy-to-use Complaint Assistant to make it easy to report fraud, fakes, cheats, deceptive business practices and a litany of other abuses. There's also a short video that outlines what types of complaints the FTC wants to hear about, and what you should do to have your voice heard.