In the 21st century, many internet users can relate to an online scam in one way or another. It has become almost a rite of passage. People like the idea of having to pay little or nothing and get a huge amount of money, goods, or quality services in return. That is the foundation that scammers use to steal from unsuspecting victims. Some people have been lucky to lose just a few bucks, while others have had their pockets emptied.
Here are some very common and simple ways that you could get scammed online.
Attractive Job Offers
During the Coronavirus pandemic, the need to work from home surged. With everyone looking for an online job, job scams spread like wildfire. Here’s how it works: A scammer sends random job offers to people who are not even necessarily looking for jobs or are in different professions. After accepting the mystery offer with an exaggerated compensation package, people attend interviews where scammers collect all their information, including bank account details, credit card details, and passwords. They may also send a check with an amount exceeding the agreed one and ask job seekers to return the difference. However, not everything is simple. Since the check is fake, people don’t receive any money at all.
Fake Lotteries
This trick is quite effective because it plies on human emotions, especially greed, which is a general human weakness. It starts with a random email from a scammer disguised as a legit company claiming that your account has been selected to participate in a highly rewarding lottery. More often than not, such an email will excite most people. As exciting as it sounds, and in most cases, these victims are not part of any lottery. After “winning” the prize, which you obviously will, you are prompted to send some amount as transfer fees to get your prize. With the requested amount being a very small percentage compared to the won prize, most people have no problem with making the payment.
Craigslist Scams
It is easy to fall for this scam if you are shopping on a very tight budget or are low on cash. The scammer usually lists out a very expensive product at an unbelievably low price. For example, the “seller” could list a smart Lululemon mirror that would otherwise be $1500 for $150. They then request you to communicate with them via messaging platforms where they can send you a Google confirmation code. A single click on the code ties your phone number to your Google account, granting the scammer access to the account and the information in it; and yeah, you don’t get the item you ordered.
Online Dating Scams
For a hopeless romantic, it is easy to get tricked into a romantic scam. Usually, you meet someone on a dating platform. After getting to know each other in what feels like an authentic interaction, the person on the other side starts requesting money based on a personal hardship they are going through. They might even request you to redirect money or items they sent you.
YouTube Growth Hacking
This one is mostly coming from Indians who claim to have expert tips on how to grow a YouTube channel to gain millions of viewers and followers. Although it is a long con of trying to convince victims with account backend statistics and earnings, the stake is high. The “YouTube expert” eventually offers to sell you their listed YouTube account. After the money is sent, they disappear and never appear again.
Charity Scams
If you are the benevolent kind that jumps at every opportunity to do good, beware of this scam. Fraudsters set up charity donation websites and accounts to help people in need, such as victims of natural disasters or citizens of undeveloped countries. They then reach out to people through carefully crafted emotional pitches to solicit funds. These fake donation websites’ successes are based on sympathy and emotional deception. The money collected obviously never gets to the intended parties.
Pandemic Scams
Covid-19 gave scammers new ideas to reach people’s pockets. The scams now come in different varieties and are presented in new and undetectable ways. Fraudsters might be offering fake online medical consultations or selling curative medicine only to collect your sensitive data that they will use to steal from you. Others create websites showing fake infection rates in different parts of the world. Downloading something from such sites is designed to infect your device with viruses.
Selling eBay Counterfeits
During tough economic times, everyone is looking for ways to earn some extra money. That gives scammers yet another idea. They reach out as a distributor in need of a sales representative from your area through eBay. Although the goods are presented as genuine, the sales from the account obviously do not reach the buyers. After sending the last fee to the distributor to facilitate the dispatch of current orders, the screen goes black, and you never hear from them again.
Robocalls
These calls are made using weird-looking numbers and with a robot at the other end of it. Although the information delivered sometimes might be actually useful, if keen, you can tell it off from a scam call. They are mostly uncalled for, offering different discounts for products you had not signed up to get, presenting fake tax bills from the IRS, or requesting sensitive information on behalf of a genuine company.
What to Do?
Now that we have talked about the most common ways to get scammed online, let’s see what you can do to prevent it:
- Avoid Clicking on Suspicious Links or Attachments
Whenever someone sends you links or attachments, step back and think for a moment. If you act in a hurry, fraudsters can get access to your device, which will result in money loss, identity theft, or both.
- Don’t Be Gullible
If someone pretends to be an IRS official or charity organizer, among others, don’t just take their word for it. There are a few giveaway signs that can give away scammers. First, they almost always act in a hurry, being scared of losing a person they could benefit from. Second, they are usually inconsistent in what they say. Third, if they reach out to you via email or messages, you may spot grammar and lexical errors that official organizations wouldn’t have.
An effective way to find out who you are actually dealing with is to reverse search their number on Nuwber. After you do, you will learn their real name, address, professional details, and much more.
Conclusion
It is critical to remember that scammers know how to trick you into giving away your personal information, including bank account details, login credentials, and even an address. It is easy to fall prey, especially if they are pausing as reps from well-known organizations. If an offer presented to you sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
If you recognize any warning signs, be vigilant and do your research before handing over any information, responding, or sending money. Staying safe is a lot easier than fighting to get your money back.
