Beware of crooks, fraudsters, here are their tricks

Every week, we learn in the media that people have fallen into the traps of pirates who abuse very well-crafted schemes that can stretch over months to extract tidy sums of money from you. Here are their unorthodox methods to know to avoid their pitfalls.

Examples of fraud

• Fake profiles of famous personalities on social networks;
• Rental scams to force a prospective tenant to send a sum of money to reserve accommodation seen on social networks and sites like Kijiji or Craiglist;
• Immigration fraud by a person or site that promotes additional or faster services;
• Cyberharassment is a form of maliciousness aimed at disrupting the victim’s social relationships, isolating them or rejecting them from their family circle;
• Identity theft;
• The online traps of cybercriminals in financial fraud;
• Fraud through a false job offer.

Chances are you’ve encountered a scammer recently – probably more than one, whether over the phone, through spam or on social media. Last year alone, 2.6 million fraud reports were filed in the United States and people reported losing $10 billion to scammers. In the country, it is $567 million according to the Anti-Fraud Center (CAFC) in 2023. Worse still, the Center estimates that only 5 to 10% of people report fraud.

Psychological tricks

In all the types of scams mentioned earlier, scammers mainly use these tricks to destabilize you and convince you to make decisions that will probably seem unbelievable in hindsight. In the heat of the moment, it’s easy to be manipulated. If you inadvertently engage with a scammer, you may fall victim to one or more of their psychological techniques to throw you off balance.

Fake government agency

Scammers often pose as people in positions of authority, whether they are government officials, law enforcement officers, or experts.

We’re all used to relying on those in charge, and scammers take advantage of this habit to lower our guards.

The criminal can also use the phishing technique which consists of calling, sending an SMS or a false email to the victim pretending to be a legitimate organization, in order to extract their personal information. Here’s an example: making the victim believe that they have committed an offense (such as speeding) and that they can avoid additional charges by paying quickly by credit card.

If someone claiming to be an authority figure resists any attempt at verification – claiming that you will be arrested if you hang up, or that you don’t have time to verify their claims – it’s probably a scam. On the contrary, legitimate authorities will have no problem with you carrying out a reasonable check.

Time pressure

Scammers want you to use the emotional and instinctive side of your brain, in order to set you up with scams often presented as limited opportunities, either in terms of time or offer, which immediately puts you in a more emotional state because you don’t want to miss out. Like, quick money, with bitcoins for example.

Delivery or fake invoice scams, which often feature a convenient (and very fake) contact link or phone number that you can easily click to get in touch or to resolve the error.

So whenever you are pushed to take immediate action to solve a problem or gain an advantage, stop. No legitimate business will ever ask you to make such decisions in a hurry.

Foot in the door

Scammers know that people are often wary of large, spectacular sums of money or anything that involves significant effort. So they use a foot-in-the-door technique. The way it works is simple: they contact you by simply asking you to give them two minutes of your time or to answer a simple question.

Then a flood of additional requests makes it difficult to refuse to cooperate. For example, if you’ve already agreed that a specific cause is worth supporting, refusing to donate money makes you seem like a liar.

By sticking their foot in the door, the fraudster can begin their deception by asking for an exorbitant amount of money, which is easily rejected. He can then follow up with a much less imposing request, which will suddenly seem acceptable in contrast.

Solution: hang up. Do your own charity work. No need for a stranger for this.

The Heartbreaker

Romance scams are long-term scams encountered on dating sites or social media in which scammers pose as an attractive and interested romantic partner, who is unfortunately very far away and therefore cannot meet in person . The scammer convinces his victim that she is in love, then asks for money in various forms to solve temporary problems – a car to repair or travel problems, for example.

From a distance, it may seem hard to believe that people aren’t immediately suspicious when their new “friend” asks them for money. But these scammers use what’s called “love bombing” to emotionally overwhelm and manipulate their victims. The romance scam begins with constant, dramatic displays of affection, then withholds them without explanation, forcing the victim to make an effort to regain those feelings of adoration. Before you know it, you’re scrambling to do whatever he wants to regain a good reputation with the Heartbreaker.

Things to watch out for: If a stranger starts showering you with attention and praise, be wary. If she then seems to randomly cool down and get angry at you, it’s almost certain that you’re being manipulated, it’s time to walk away.

In the same vein, if the heartbreaker suggests exchanging intimate photos, then sextortion is not far away.

Fraud Alert Newsletter

If you have a loved one who is potentially the perfect victim for scammers, subscribing to the Fraude-Alerte newsletter could lead them to be more vigilant. Every month, the Cybercriminology Clinic provides you with information on various cases of fraud and the methods used by scammers.

Here is the subscription link. https://www.clinique-cybercriminologie.ca/post/infolettre