Technology has pervaded our daily lives for good. As technology evolves our lives become easier. However new tech also creates new avenues for cyber frauds. Scammers are getting more creative all the time. Here is a short guide on how to spot the most common kinds of online scams and to keep from falling prey to them.
A widespread menace
In a recent report The Australian reported that a 37 year old man from Darwin became the victim of a tax scam. He had been receiving calls from someone who posed as an Australian Tax Office (ATO) employee. The victim was told that he had to pay AUD 12,000 in unpaid taxes, else he would be arrested. Incidents such as this are becoming more commonplace. The Australian Competitors & Consumers Commission revealed in its study ‘Targeting Scams Report 2019’ that there were 353,000 instances of cyber fraud in 2019. The victims collectively lost AUD 634 million.
Phishing
This is a common technique employed to steal confidential information. Phishing works via email. A scammer may pose as a bank official and trick victims into giving out their account information. This could include account numbers, card details, pins, passwords and the like. Scammers use this information to transfer victims’ money to their own accounts. Spotting these scammers is often easy. Banks never ask for confidential information over phone or email. Anyone asking for info which the bank should already have is a potential fraud. You can also readily verify directly with your bank over their helpline.
Dating scams
Scammers frequently operate on dating, matrimonial, and social media sites. They prey on the emotional vulnerabilities of potential victims. Yoshe Taylor made headlines when she appeared on Australian Story on ABC. She had become a victim of an elaborate dating scam. She fell in love with a Cambodian man who later convinced her to enter into a business deal. On her third trip from Cambodia to Australia the man asked her to carry a backpack for a friend in Brisbane. 2 kg of heroin was stashed in the linings of the backpack. Taylor never made it past airport security. She received a 23 year sentence and was sent to a Cambodian jail. By the time this scam came to light 6 other women had fallen for the same scam run by the same man.
Both men and women become victims of the ‘romance scam’. Scammers form an emotional bond with victims. They try to extract money somehow. Sometimes the ‘friend’ requests money to import a gift to Australia. At other times the scammer claims to have got stuck in some situation and needs financial help. Any business or financial discussion initiated on a dating platform should send up red flags immediately.
Shopping scam
Scammers post fake listings on ecommerce and peer-to-peer shopping platforms. They offer premium products at unbelievably low prices. Scammers create a sense of urgency by making these offers available only for a limited time. The victims who pay for these products either receive fakes or don’t receive anything at all.
Spotting these scammers is fairly easy. Most ecommerce sites have some form of built-in payment protection. Fraudsters generally try to get their victims to communicate via other channels such as email or text apps. They demand that payment is made via a wire transfer or another mode which is difficult to trace and recover. A genuine seller would be happy to receive payment via the merchant site. Stick with the mainstream payment options and keep all communication on the merchant platform to protect yourself from these scams.
Property scam
Scammers post fake listings wanting to sell properties at significantly less than their market price. They claim to need the money urgently. Victims are asked to make an initial online ‘deposit’ to initiate the sale. After sending money the victims never hear from the fraudsters again.
Another flavor of the property scam is the rental scam. Scammers post fake ads to rent out properties they don’t own. Again, the rents are notably lower than prevailing rates. Scammers claim to be living abroad, which makes it impossible to show the property, except in photos. They ask the victim to send money online and promise to courier the apartment keys.
One can easily avoid being a victim of a property scam. Always insist on seeing the property firsthand. Verify the paperwork and the owner’s identity. Consult a lawyer if you want to be extra cautious.
Lottery scam
Lottery, sweepstakes, inheritance, and other scams involving unexpected windfalls generally take the same form. Scammers contact their targets and tell them about the large sums of money (think millions) they have won. They ask for bank account details and official documents for verification. The victims who share this info see their bank accounts quickly wiped out. Often the fraudsters use the victims’ identities to propagate additional scams. To avoid falling prey to these scams, consider that you cannot win a lottery in which you never participated.
Investment scam
Someone posing as an investment agent or portfolio manager makes contact. They talk about a ‘low-risk, high-reward’ investment proposition. The investment is generally in an overseas company or asset. As soon as the victim transfers money to be invested, it is gone without a trace.
To verify the authenticity of a real investor simply ask for their license number. The Australian Financial Services (AFS) licenses financial advisors. Look up the AFS online Licensees Search to ascertain if the person calling you is real. If the caller refuses to give out their license number or claims they don’t require a license, stay away.
Overseas employment scam
Millions of migrant workers live and work abroad globally. Most of them support their families with remittances sent via international money transfers. Getting an overseas employment offer is the aspiration of millions. Unfortunately scammers create fake job postings on many employment search sites. They offer high paying overseas jobs in well-known companies. The scammers’ emails generally include the company logos of the firms they claim to represent. They can be very convincing. The scammer asks for an upfront fee to ‘process’ the job application and visa.
Bona fide employers never ask applicants to pay. The mention of an upfront fee is an unmistakable sign of a scam. The best practice is to report such scams to the companies they claim to represent. This gives the real employer a chance to put warnings on its website, and help other potential victims steer clear of the scam.
About the author:
Hemant G is a contributing writer at Sparkwebs LLC, a Digital and Content Marketing Agency. When he’s not writing, he loves to travel, scuba dive, and watch documentaries.