Cops For A Cure 
Flora is doing very well and she very much appreciates all of the support the community has shown. Her surgery is completed, the breast cancer has been removed and now she will begin chemo therapy and radiation. The battle is not over, but with your help we will help her and others who face this horrible and very scary disease. Flora is a fighter, many of you know of her battle, few of you know of her personal efforts to help others fight their battle. We are fortunate to have her on the Portage Police Department, she certainly has distinguished herself in the manner that she has dealt with this hideous disease that we call breast cancer. I am honored that the Portage Police Department and so many other law enforcement agencies in Northwest Indiana have been given an opportunity to join the fight.
"Cops For A Cure" has sold thousands of pink magnetic cancer ribbons and we are continuing with our 5k Run / Walk, which is set for Saturday, September 18th. The event will begin at the YMCA in Portage and I again thank all at the YMCA for their tremendous support and assistance. I also want to thank the law firm of Rhame and Elwood, Steindler Signs and The Horizon Bank for all of their support, we very much appreciate their efforts.
Thus far the cancer ribbon sales and the funds for sponsorship and participation with the 5K totals nearly $11,000. Just the other day a cancer survivor came to the department to purchase a $5 cancer ribbon. She handed over a $100 bill and told us to keep the change. A unified community is a strong community and together we might just make a difference.
Certainly $11,000 is an amazing number, but we have only started to take in registration fees for the 5K, so I know it is going to grow. Between sponsorships, raffle gifts and runners, we may end up with quite an impressive donation. I have attached the front and back of the 5K flyer and I certainly urge you to sign up and be a part of a very important event. Assistant Chief Larry Jolley as well as several of our Officers have made this their personal mission and I urge you to contact Larry at (219) 762-3122 with related questions.
All proceeds from the cancer ribbons and the 5K event will be donated to the Susan G. Komen For The Cure.
SPICE, K 2, YUCATAN FIRE, GENIE AND THE LIST GOES ON
In my last email we told you about this plant like material, which is sold as incense, but it is laced with a synthetic compound that mimics the effects of THC found in marijuana. It's presence in the area is increasing and you can now find this stuff at a growing number of gas stations and convenience stores. I paid $35 for a gram of it so that I knew what it looked like, for those that pay to smoke it, they are rolling the dice. The short term and long term effects of this stuff are unknown, watch for it and keep your kids away from it.
It is legal for now, personally, I do not frequent stores that sell it and I tell them why I am no longer a customer. I understand their dilemma, if all the other stores are selling it and making a boat load of money then they need to offer it to keep their customers. Still, in my opinion, it represents a real threat to our community. Doing the right thing is not always easy, but it is always right.
I met with a community group last night and we discussed the threat that this incense poses. I do not see a quick resolution from our Federal or state government in regulating this stuff. Perhaps the best way to attack it is to tax it to the point that kids just cannot afford it. Cigarette taxes and related luxury type products are heavily taxed, this sure would be a good one to target and perhaps an effective way to keep it out of our kids hands.
Again, we do not know of the short or long term effects of this. Educate your kids! Go to the internet and "Google" k2, Spice, Spike, Yucatan Fire, etc, Go to YouTube and let your kids see the videos of the effects of those on these drugs and then let them make an educated decision as to whether they really want to try this.
Internet Scams (AGAIN!!!)
Many thanks to one of our "Chief's Email" subscribers for sending along this latest scam, which involves tying up your telephone line long enough to get into your bank accounts. If the bank tries to call you to verify the requested transaction, they get the busy tone and may then proceed with the financial transaction.
The Latest Phone Scam- Targets Your Bank Account 
Imagine getting hundreds or thousands of calls on your home, business, or cell phone, tying up the lines. And when you answer, you hear anything from dead air to recorded messages, advertisements, or even phone sex menus.
It's annoying, no doubt. But it could be more than that-it could be a sign that you're being victimized by the latest scam making the rounds. This"telephone denial-of-service attack"could be the precursor to a crime targeting your bank accounts.
In a recent twist, criminals have transferred this activity to telephones, using automated dialing programs and multiple accounts to overwhelm the phone lines of unsuspecting citizens.
Why are they doing it? Turns out the calls are simply a diversionary tactic: while the lines are tied up, the criminals-masquerading as the victims themselves-are raiding the victims' bank accounts and online trading or other money management accounts.
Here, in a nutshell, is how the whole thing works:
- Weeks or months before the phone calls start, a criminal uses social engineering tactics or malware to elicit personal information from a victim that this person's bank or financial institution would have-like account numbers and passwords. Perhaps the victim responded to a bogus e-mail phishing for information, inadvertently gave out sensitive information during a phone call, or put too much personal information on social networking sites that are trolled by criminals.
- Using technology, the criminal ties up the victim's various phone lines.
- Then, the criminal either contacts the financial institution pretending to be the victim.or pilfers the victim's online bank accounts using fraudulent transactions. Normally, the institution calls to verify the transactions, but of course they can't get through to the victim over the phone.
- If the transactions aren't made, the criminals sometimes re-contact the financial institution as the victim and ask for it to be done. Or they add their own phone number to victims' accounts and just wait for the bank to call.
By the time the victim or the financial institution realizes what happens, it's too late.
Ultimately, though, it's individual consumers and small- and medium-sized businesses on the front line of this battle. So take precautions: never give out personal information to an unsolicited phone caller or via e-mail; change online banking and automated telephone system passwords frequently; check your account balances often; and protect your computers with the latest virus protection and security software.
And if you think you may have been targeted by a telephone denial-of-service attack, contact your financial institution and your telephone provider, and file a complaint with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center
One other note on these computer hackers- watch for those pop ups that warn you that your computer security is being threatened- Those scare tactics beg you to open up the link and then your problems have begun! I seem to be getting those more and more frequently. If you care to learn more, visit the FBI's site --- http://www.fbi.gov/page2/july10/scareware_070910.html
That is it for now, remember, if it does not seem right, it likely is not right. Call the police and let us figure it out!
Contact Us!
Emergency - "911"
Routine Business - (219) 762-3122
STOP Team - (219) 764-5676
We Tip Line- 1 - 800 - 78 - CRIME
Be Safe!
Mark J. Becker
Chief of Police
Portage Police Department
Portage, Indiana