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It wasn't a money order I received in the mail. It was a genuine check, watermark and all for 3,000 dollars.

The letter that accompanied it informed me that I'd actually won a much larger prize, and this check was to be signed and mailed to a woman in Ireland to cover the "transfer fees" of the money from Europe, to get it to the states.

Even my husband, who is not as gullible as me; thought for a little while this could be the real thing because the check was definitely authentic. WE started to allow ourselves a tiny bit of excitement.

Then we took the letter to research the company we'd gotten the checks from. As soon as we got to their website there was a message regarding stolen checks. and how to contact the authorities should you receive one of their checks.

Should have figured-we never are that lucky.

WE brought the check to the pot office. The man there took the check and letter and knew right away what it was. "It's an international fraud ring. If you would have signed that check, you could be in real trouble."

So I guess the moral of the story is this; some checks are not counterfeit. You may receive a stolen check in the mail.

The smartest thing to do is not endorse anything unless you know exactly what it's for and who it came from.

Learn more about this author, Erinmarie.
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