After several articles on scams, it occurred to me that you may not know what I’m talking about! We all use terms that are specific to our jobs (have you ever listened to a doctor??) but if people don’t understand what we’re saying, the message is much less effective!
Hopefully, this is an example of better late than never! Here are some terms that you may hear, and being familiar with the terms will give you some tools for your Scam Protection Tool Kit.
What does it mean to “scam” someone? It means that there is an effort to obtain something (such as money or personal information) by deceit or fraud. The person who perpetrates (or tries to perpetrate) this act is a “scammer”.
The scammer may try to reach potential victims through telephone, fax, email, texting, social media, or in person. Scammers are lurking everywhere. They can be on book club sites, dating sites, prayer / faith based sites, and they can be showing up at your door. They. Are. Everywhere!
There are various schemes and they are all meant to hook the potential victim. Information is key, and knowing scam terminology can help you avoid getting hooked.
Catfishing is used to hook people seeking relationships. Catfishers create fake identities to catch potential victims. The identities may have a real person’s face and someone’s real birthday but they are not one real person. If the initial contacts are through social media, the catfisher will probably try to connect through the telephone or email to gain trust to get money or to involve the victim in criminal activities.
Phishing is done with fake emails. You receive an email that looks totally legit. Scammers say that your account has been hacked or they may impersonate government agencies. They want you to click on a link or call a number to address the situation.
Juice Jacking occurs when your device is plugged into a public WiFi spot allowing scammers to hack into your device.
Spoofing occurs when a scammer transmits false caller ID information which increases the likelihood that you’ll answer. Family or friends’ numbers, government agencies, and other institutions are frequently spoofed numbers.
Smishing, which is short for SMS phishing, involves text messages that appear to be from your financial institution or other company, and they display a number or link to call. That link connects you with scammers who then try to get money or personal information.
And, to conclude today’s lesson, is cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrency is digital or virtual money. It can be used like ordinary money but has no physical form (bills or coins), existing only in electronic form. Transactions are not controlled and not regulated by financial authorities. The use of cryptography (the science of hiding information) makes it hard to crack the security system. Bitcoin is an example of cryptocurrency. Knowledge IS power! Stay informed. Stay safe.
