Security experts advise consumers to keep a close eye on their bank and credit card statements, and for good reason: Small, unauthorized charges often are the first sign that thieves have made off with your account number and are getting ready to sell it to other crooks or use it to rack up thousands of dollars in fraudulent purchases. The Boston Globe writes this week about one such scam, which shows up on consumer accounts as 25-cent charges to a mysterious company called Adele Services, supposedly in New York. From that piece: Two theories of what is going on have advanced on message boards and among consumer advocates: Someone is trying to find out whether an illegally obtained credit card number will work before making a bigger charge, or they’re trying to rip off tiny amounts from tons of people. The latter theory has more credibility at the moment. The