Be wary of high-yield Internet offers
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The Web site had an online application that consumers were asked to complete, print and mail with a check. Federal Savings listed a payment processing address in Seattle, which we eventually found a phone number for by researching the registration of the Web site's domain name. Calls to that number weren't returned. Calls to two numbers listed on the Web site were greeted with messages saying the mailbox was full. An e-mail sent through the Web site's comments/questions section wasn't responded to either.

Federal Savings claimed on its Web site that it was a wholly owned subsidiary of First Bancshares Inc. There are numerous First Bancshares listed in the databases of federal regulatory agencies. None that we found had a subsidiary called Federal Savings or Federal Savings USA.

At this point Federal Savings' "Count on Us" motto seemed dubious. When we returned to work on Monday and tried to access the Web site again, it was gone.

We passed on our information to the Office of Thrift Supervision in Washington, D.C.

"When we're aware of a situation such as this we look into it and try to make a determination as to whether there are misrepresentations to the consumer," says OTS spokesman Kevin Petrasic. "If there is, we advise the entity to take corrective action and remove any representations that it's an insured product. If the consumer sees something at 8.85 percent, which is probably 3 percent better than the highest yields out there, they have to check it out."

Similarly, an FDIC spokesman said he sent the information to the agency's fraud department but couldn't say whether any action would be taken. He also advised consumers to use the FDIC Web site to double-check that an institution is insured with them.

Credit union members should check with the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund.

Again, without an extensive investigation there's no way for us to say whether Federal Savings's offer was legitimate. What we can say is that there are many signs pointing to potential problems and no answers to any questions. No doubt, 8.85 percent is enticing, but that's junk bond status, and even with junk bonds you get the benefit of a credit quality rating. Here you get nothing, and that should be more than enough to keep you from sending a check.