For lovers of easy money, there’s nothing sacred. They take money from students, pensioners, office employees, and factory workers.
And the best part is that no one forces them to give the money to the scammer. Victims themselves get caught “on the hook.” Swindlers prey on innocent victims, especially the most gullible ones.
I suggest we study the ‘best’ fraudulent schemes that thousands of network users have “fallen for”. Read, remember, or better – write down these techniques to protect yourself from scammers.
Advertising platforms
Most often, fraudulent schemes on the Internet are turned on the sites of purchase and sale. There are several reasons for this: you can choose a fake phone number or sign someone else’s name and surname. It is extremely difficult to recheck these data. As far as scammers and other criminals are concerned, it is a great way to con people out of their money.
If you get “on the hook”, you can end up penniless and without the thing you wanted to buy.
So, what’s the point of the divorce:
- The scammer after watching himself buy. Say, TV. He gets in touch with the salesman, gets his bank card number and details. He makes an agreement to buy a TV;
- Then he creates a similar announcement about the sale of the TV and “catches” the buyers;
- When the buyer is ready to pay money for the purchase, he is called the card number of the real owner of the TV.
The cheater gets the TV for free, and the victim – a solid minus on the account.
The only way to avoid deception is to make an appointment with the seller live and pay cash. A con man with the slightest threat of exposure will refuse the meeting.
Social networks
New fraudulent schemes have also appeared in social networks. Now, bankers from Europe, offering loans at low interest rates – from 2 to 5%, are “knocking” friends.
At such moments, many users forget that free cheese exists only in a mousetrap, and in pursuit of almost free credit, divulge confidential information, such as the numbers on their bank card, CVV and PIN-code.
Bank employees do not have the right to demand this type of information from their client. Remember, if anybody asks you for confidential information regarding your bank account or payment cards, they are not legitimate operators.
The number of fraudulent supposed lenders is increasing every year. They steal tens of millions of dollars annually from gullible individuals.
One more way to protect yourself from deception – google the photo. I bet it won’t belong to the person who wrote to you. Surprisingly, large scams like free ports are also not distinguished by creativity.
Messengers
Modern fraud schemes have recently reached the messengers. Criminals create copies of profiles of famous online shops and send out messages about mega discounts.
The messages say, for example, that you can buy home appliances, electronic gadgets, furniture, and dishes at amazing prices after switching to a fake site. In this fake site, people ‘make purchases,’ during which the swindler gains access to their credit/debit card details.
They launch such campaigns on the eve of the big holidays – New Year, Christmas, and March 8. On these dates, consumers buy presents and are always on the lookout for good deals and large discounts.
It’s easy to avoid a divorce:
- Look at the name of the site in the address bar. If it doesn’t start with https://, but with http://, you’re most likely looking at a fake.
- Check the information on promotions and sales on the official website of the online store. And even better – call your manager and ask about the amount of discounts and terms of purchase.
Consumers can never be too careful. The more time you spend gathering and analyzing information about a seller, especially if you have never heard of them, the less likely you are to be conned. Hopefully, the information in this article will help reduce your risk of losing money to swinders. Good luck
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Interesting related article: “What is a con or to con?“