Homeowners bring Christmas cheer to Cape Coral with dazzling light displaysFire takes over trailer in St. James City
CAPE CORAL Homeowners bring Christmas cheer to Cape Coral with dazzling light displays We might not have snow but we do have some amazing Christmas lights. If you plan to hit the road with your family and check out the displays, WINK News has you covered.
ST. JAMES CITY Fire takes over trailer in St. James City Authorities responded to a fire in St. James City after a trailer became engulfed in flames.
Charlotte County man arrested for shooting person with flare gun A man has been arrested after shooting someone with a flare gun.
SAN CARLOS PARK Lee County School District approves bus service after mother’s fight The school district said Shannan Santiago’s kids can have a school bus because they live more than two miles away from their school.
SANIBEL Bigger and better beaches; Sanibel gets fresh sand If you haven’t been to Sanibel lately you might not recognize it. Just in time for the holidays, the island is celebrating bigger, better and more beautiful beaches.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral twins together for holidays after congenital heart defect scare Everyone together at home for Christmas. That’s the wish for one Cape Coral family since they were blessed with twins in the spring.
PORT CHARLOTTE Meeting held for future of Beach Park in Port Charlotte Beach Park in Port Charlotte has been closed since hurricanes Helene and Milton. Last week county leaders held a special meeting to come up with a solution to finally reopen the park to neighbors.
PUNTA GORDA Downtown Punta Gorda restaurant rebuilding after back-to-back storms In downtown Punta Gorda, the back-to-back hurricanes spared no one. For one restaurant, it meant starting over, cutting up the walls and redoing the floors not once but twice.
Valerie’s House offers support to those grieving this holiday season Christmas is considered a magical time for many families, but many also struggle with the loss of a loved one this time of year. Valerie’s House is opening its doors for the holidays to help struggling families deal with that grief.
Local beauty editor impacting community through Beauty Holiday event A local beauty editor turned beauty elf is using her event for the better. Wink news anchor Lindsey Sablan talked to Lindsay Peragallo, founder of Beauty Holiday. With brands such as Mac and CoverGirl, table after table was packed with self-care items at the Beauty Holiday event. It was like the elves quit the toy […]
ESTERO Study shows rent prices dropping in areas of SWFL According to national data, rent is slowly dropping in Lee, Collier and Charlotte counties. A new study with Florida Gulf Coast University shows the price drop might be more drastic than we think.
Ways to help with an aching head Imagine waking up with a headache so strong you can’t think, a neck pain so severe you can’t move and your eyesight suddenly turning blurry.
Novelist Randy Wayne White plans experimental citrus farming at historic Bokeelia property White just closed on a real estate deal that’s short on price but big on history with a positive outlook on the future of citrus framing.
Deadline approaching for FEMA assistance after hurricanes Milton and Helene Floridians affected by hurricanes Milton and Helene have just two weeks left to apply for federal assistance, with the deadline set for Jan. 7, 2025.
FORT MYERS Man wanted for stealing over $7K in items from Fort Myers business Southwest Florida Crime Stoppers is seeking information on a man wanted for stealing over $7,000 in items from a Fort Myers business.
CAPE CORAL Homeowners bring Christmas cheer to Cape Coral with dazzling light displays We might not have snow but we do have some amazing Christmas lights. If you plan to hit the road with your family and check out the displays, WINK News has you covered.
ST. JAMES CITY Fire takes over trailer in St. James City Authorities responded to a fire in St. James City after a trailer became engulfed in flames.
Charlotte County man arrested for shooting person with flare gun A man has been arrested after shooting someone with a flare gun.
SAN CARLOS PARK Lee County School District approves bus service after mother’s fight The school district said Shannan Santiago’s kids can have a school bus because they live more than two miles away from their school.
SANIBEL Bigger and better beaches; Sanibel gets fresh sand If you haven’t been to Sanibel lately you might not recognize it. Just in time for the holidays, the island is celebrating bigger, better and more beautiful beaches.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral twins together for holidays after congenital heart defect scare Everyone together at home for Christmas. That’s the wish for one Cape Coral family since they were blessed with twins in the spring.
PORT CHARLOTTE Meeting held for future of Beach Park in Port Charlotte Beach Park in Port Charlotte has been closed since hurricanes Helene and Milton. Last week county leaders held a special meeting to come up with a solution to finally reopen the park to neighbors.
PUNTA GORDA Downtown Punta Gorda restaurant rebuilding after back-to-back storms In downtown Punta Gorda, the back-to-back hurricanes spared no one. For one restaurant, it meant starting over, cutting up the walls and redoing the floors not once but twice.
Valerie’s House offers support to those grieving this holiday season Christmas is considered a magical time for many families, but many also struggle with the loss of a loved one this time of year. Valerie’s House is opening its doors for the holidays to help struggling families deal with that grief.
Local beauty editor impacting community through Beauty Holiday event A local beauty editor turned beauty elf is using her event for the better. Wink news anchor Lindsey Sablan talked to Lindsay Peragallo, founder of Beauty Holiday. With brands such as Mac and CoverGirl, table after table was packed with self-care items at the Beauty Holiday event. It was like the elves quit the toy […]
ESTERO Study shows rent prices dropping in areas of SWFL According to national data, rent is slowly dropping in Lee, Collier and Charlotte counties. A new study with Florida Gulf Coast University shows the price drop might be more drastic than we think.
Ways to help with an aching head Imagine waking up with a headache so strong you can’t think, a neck pain so severe you can’t move and your eyesight suddenly turning blurry.
Novelist Randy Wayne White plans experimental citrus farming at historic Bokeelia property White just closed on a real estate deal that’s short on price but big on history with a positive outlook on the future of citrus framing.
Deadline approaching for FEMA assistance after hurricanes Milton and Helene Floridians affected by hurricanes Milton and Helene have just two weeks left to apply for federal assistance, with the deadline set for Jan. 7, 2025.
FORT MYERS Man wanted for stealing over $7K in items from Fort Myers business Southwest Florida Crime Stoppers is seeking information on a man wanted for stealing over $7,000 in items from a Fort Myers business.
A Fort Myers woman believes a fraudulent QR code at Bonita Beach Park near Barefoot Beach caused her credit card to be hacked. She’s on a mission to warn others. RELATED: Possible pay-by-text scam in downtown Fort Myers may have cost woman nearly $1,000 Ellie Lorenc visited the area on Friday, November 8th. She said it was a “great” beach day until a few hours later when she got a fraud alert text from her bank. “It is very frustrating,” said Lorenc. “We were fortunate. We thought to get parking in the parking lot because a lot of times it’s full.” She spent four hours at the beach and spent eight dollars on parking. “The only option you have to get parking there is to scan the QR code, and then you have to put in all the information. You have to put in your license plate, and then it asks you for all your credit card information. So I did that, and it was not a problem,” said Lorenc. Then she went to grab lunch. “I got the fraud notice on my phone. I got a text. So I had, at that point, to call and let them know that, yes, it was not my purchase and I had to cancel the credit card. So, pretty much my whole lunch was interrupted. Then I had, you know, to go back and cancel all the stuff that credit card is on,” said Lorenc. She said she’s now out of a credit card. “I think it is important to let people know that this is going on, and I think it’s more common than people know,” she added. We contacted Lee County and Collier County officials because the location where Lorenc parked is so close to the county line. None of the agencies have received any complaints about the issue. However, fraudulent QR codes are an issue across the country. The Better Business Bureau issued an alert over the summer. BBB: Recent ways scammers are using QR codes Parking meter payment. Fraudulent QR codes can be placed on the back of parking meters, leading victims to assume they can pay for parking through the QR code if they do not have change. Read more here. Cryptocurrency wallets and romance scams. The rise of cryptocurrencies has altered traditional thinking about investments, and the confusion surrounding these transactions makes it a ripe ground for scammers to take their toll. Read more here. Phishing scams. The design of QR codes makes it impossible for the user to know where the code will direct them after scanning, allowing scammers to send victims to phishing websites or downloads that will infect devices with malware. Read more here. BBB: How to avoid QR scams Confirm the QR code before scanning. Do not open links from strangers.Be wary of short links. Ensure you are confident that the QR code is legitimate before following short links, as it may send you to a malicious website. Once on the website, look at the URL and verify the domain and subdomain make sense for the organization that supposedly operates it. Check for tampering. Some scammers attempt to mislead consumers by altering legitimate business ads or placing stickers over the QR code. “They’re so good at this stuff, they would put a different code, and you wouldn’t even notice it. Their own QR code cover the one and it’s for the parking meter. You’re literally giving them all your information,” said Lorenc. **This article has been updated to include both Lee and Collier Counties.