Dr. Lisa Bryan
I am guessing since the beginning of time there have been scam artists. I think the Internet has made this problem even greater since people can pretend to be anyone. The scamming of people via the Internet is at a new high and it becomes real when it happens to your friends and family. People quickly forget the rule of the Internet – people can pretend to be anyone over the Internet.
Who is the most likely to get victimized by these scammers? People who are very old and very young. The most trusting among us are the ones that become the victims of these scams. Unfortunately, these victims could be your parents, grandparents, elderly neighbors and friends, or teenagers. Many of these victims are looking to find things/people on the Internet to fill gaps in their life. The scam artists look for these people who may be lonely or just unhappy in their situation. Scam artists also use the needy and the greedy with “get rich quick” promises that only leave you with less money than you started with.
What do these scam look like? I want to describe some of these scams but by no means am I including them all. I recommend always asking a close friend or family member before responding to a stranger who finds you on the Internet or via email. You must assume these people are out to take your money unless you can prove otherwise.
Many of the scams come via email, Facebook, Skype, etc. Any communication medium can provide an anonymous contact that can be used to perpetrate a fraud. One such scam comes in the form of pretending you are someone that is in great need. You may receive a contact via the Internet that describes the person as in the military or other public service type job. Who does not want to help our soldiers and service members? These people even use pictures of service men or women to lure the person by putting a face to the contact. The men and women in our military are not going to reach out and find you via the Internet and ask for money. Some ask for help with their children or even a sick relative. They lure people into a romantic type relationship – promising to come see the person when they get home from service. These scam artists are usually someone from a foreign country and any money sent to them disappears – never to be seen again. Law enforcement is powerless to go after them in another country. These scammers pray on our sense of kindness and concern.
Other victims are deceived into “get rich quick” scams. If you give me a fee, I can send you $5,000. I can tell you for certain that no one will give you $5,000 for a $100 fee. This deception also can come in the form of a sweepstakes. If you give me a fee and your bank account information, I can transfer money to your account. Again, if it is too good to be true, odds are it is a fraud.
How can you prevent the ones you love from fraud? Monitor their Internet/email communications as much as possible. Talk to your loved ones about fraud and encourage them to discuss any financial transactions or investments with you. Stay in touch and ask questions about new “people” in their life. The scam artists have the advantage over you every time so make sure you keep the lines of communication open at all times. Please also report all fraud and scams to your local law enforcement agency or the State of NC Attorney General’s office.
If you have questions about this article, you can email me at staysafebusiness@gmail.com.
Dr. Lisa Lee Bryan, Program Chair – Management Information Systems/Data Analytics – CSU-Global
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