So, you’re a savvy and smart consumer who has managed to steer clear of many frauds that cost Americans billions of dollars a year. But you may not be aware of some new twists that crooks use to snare suspecting consumers:

¢ “You’ve just won….” You get an unsolicited phone call saying that you’ve just won some foreign lottery, and to collect your money you must wire or overnight certain fees to cover insurance, taxes, and shipping and handling. Scammers have put a new twist on this longtime rip-off. Using an Internet technology known as “spoofing,” they disguise their real phone numbers on your caller ID with legitimate federal agency numbers in Washington, D.C. and claim to be from agencies like the Federal Trade Commission. The average sweepstakes victim lost $2,700; lottery-scam victims, $3,200.

¢ “There’s a problem with your bank account.” You receive a message via telephone, VoIP or e-mail referring to a “problem” with your bank account that can be rectified if you give your Social Security number, account number or online password to an e-mail address or Web site. Instead, that enables identity thieves to steal credit in your name.

¢ “I’m a political refugee…” An e-mail offers you the “opportunity” – in return for your bank account numbers or other information – to share in millions of dollars that a self-proclaimed political refugee is trying to transfer illegally out of his former country, typically Nigeria. Victims of pervasive Nigerian letter scams lost $3,700 on average in 2006.

¢ “Hot stock tip….” You get a voice mail – apparently left by someone who intended to call a friend but mistakenly dialed your number – about a “hot” stock tip. If you act on it, you buy into an old-fashioned “pump and dump” scheme in which promoters artificially push up the price of thinly traded microcap stocks, which they sell to you before the bottom drops out, leaving you holding worthless shares.

¢ Bad health policy. An agent offers you or your small business a “union” health plan when you aren’t a union member. The lure is that you don’t have to pass health standards required by other policies, the rates are low and the benefits are high. The reality is that you’ll lose your shirt and be left without coverage. Promoters of this scam – who often claim their plan is exempt from state insurance laws – collect premiums from as many people as quickly as possible then skip out, leaving consumers with lots of medical bills. Insurance agents and plans they sell must be approved by your state insurance department, so contact it to make sure the company, agent and policy are properly licensed.

¢ “We move you for less.” A mover gives you a lowball estimate, takes your household belongings, then holds them hostage until you pay exorbitant and unexpected extra fees. Make sure your mover is registered with the federal Department of Transportation and licensed to transport goods interstate. Check credentials at www.fmcsa.dot.gov or call (202) 366-9805.

The bottom line: Checking out the license, reputation and references of a company or individual with whom you do business is good practice in any transaction. So is trusting your gut when a deal seems fishy.

Con artists prey on people who dream of getting something for nothing, and who let their pride, desires or needs cloud their judgment. Putting those emotions aside can help you avoid getting taken for a ride.