Face Value
sjosliHi all,
I've been reflecting today on the new age of crime/scams that have come with our heavy reliance on technology. It seems that, depending on the moment, we will trust everything or nothing at all. Unfortunately, it tends to be the important things that we trust blindly.
- A link from your doctor or bank
- A call from the billing department of some office you went to last month
- A Facebook message from an old friend
- A text regarding a recent or upcoming delivery
These are just a few of the many situations in which we let our guard down and put ourselves at risk.
I personally know an older woman who started talking to to a "friend" on a social media messaging app. We'll call this friend Tim. "Tim" started off with all the typical talking points but it didn't take long for them to transition to asking for money. Unbeknownst to them at the time, about a week prior to this, the scammer got access to "Tim's" account when they clicked on a link from another message. The scammer then took over Tim's profile and began messaging nearly every friend they had in an attempt to get money. In this example the scammer is playing to the emotions and empathy by impersonating a friend. Thankfully, a family member was alerted to the situation when they received a message from "Tim" and they were able to intervene before any money changed hands.
I also know of younger adults who receive those messages and calls threatening to send police to their work or take you to court for unpaid bills. Some of these people don't know any better or are in unhealthy financial situations so it is believable to them that someone may be pushing aggressively for payment. Sometimes these come in the form of an aggressive voice on the phone, other times they are an email or text that use words like judgment or missed court appearance and include a link to see the details. In these cases the scammer is using fear as a motivating factor. And a powerful one at that.
As scary and disheartening as these stories are, there are definitely some red flags you can become familiar with to help protect yourself.
- Is the conversation abnormally vague?
- No names, places, events mentioned
- Does this person normally talk to like this?
- If you answered no, please know that I am not telling you that it is bad to grow relationships or start new ones. But maintaining a level of weariness goes a long way here. If this is out of the norm, you should be more aware of the red flags we are discussing here.
- A sense of urgency
- Scammers want you to act now and act fast so that you don't have time to notice what is happening
- Links, links, links
- We all just need to get in the habit of not clicking links that we don't know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, are safe to use
- Ask the person you are talking to what the link is for and then google it. Better yet, give the person a call to confirm that they are the ones who sent the link, etc.
- We all just need to get in the habit of not clicking links that we don't know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, are safe to use
There are more red flags and safety guides that go into this more deeply then I have here. I highly recommend taking the time to familiarize yourself with the topic. I am sure you feel like you are too smart to fall into these traps. We all think, "no way would this happen to me". But this does not only impact the at risk and uninformed. All it takes is one busy moment and a single link to not only put yourself at risk, but everyone you know as well.
This may just be a drop in the void - but I hope that since you stumbled across this you take the reminder to be more vigilant and double check everything you encounter on the internet or receive over a device.
All the best and stay safe,
Samantha
Oh my goodness!! I cannot believe that stinking Tim guy ever did such a thing. Thanks so much for telling us to be weary!! You’re the bomb.com.
P.S. your kids seem so epic
Hello Samantha, I’d like to say I love your blog. As someone who has fallen victim to phone scammers your tips are truly helpful!
Hello Aj,
I am so sorry to hear that you have fallen victim to one of these scams. They are almost impossible to avoid now-a-days and it is so easy to fall into. It may benefit you to have someone, like a sister, to go to for a second opinion before clicking on anything in the future.
I sincerely hope that you were able to recover quickly from that scam and have found a way to avoid those interactions in the future.
All the best,
Samantha
Hi Bobert,
Thankfully it wasn't Tim, but a scammer impersonating Tim. But still, a scary situation for those of us with elderly people in our lives.
Thank you for taking the time to read my blog and interact with me!
All the best,
Samantha
Hi Sam, I can truly connect with what you are speaking about in your blog. I have an elderly relative who has experienced multiple attempts by scammers to get her to click on a link or to call a number so they can walk her through uninstalling a virus, etc. Thankfully she runs these events by me before she acts on them, however, as you stated, it only takes one time to let the scammers get the better of her. Thank you for putting this out in the world!
Hi Gina,
How scary! I am so happy to hear that your relative has someone like you to depend on.
Maybe one of these days the two of you can sit down and discuss some of the red flags like those urgent flashing messages that ask you to log in or call.
I wish you both the best. Stay safe!
- Samantha
Sam,
The internet is a scary place nowadays. I’ve received too many phony emails and seen too many web pages that seem “off.” They seem to be becoming more abundant day by day. With AI, I feel like you never can be sure what to believe anymore.
Hi Eric,
I couldn't agree with you more! And I don't think we are alone in our concerns with the safety and authenticity of most everything we encounter on our devices.
The good thing in being one of many, is that collectively we all want the same thing, transparency. So there are already a number of things in place like tags and disclaimers for edited videos and AI. And I believe these things will get better over time. Does this negate the risk and fear of misinformation? I don't think so. But it is a step in the right direction.
All the best,
Samantha
Coming from a person who has been hacked before it is truly hard to hear that others deal with this so consistently. The warning signs you mentioned are very helpful and I see where I went wrong in the past. Thank you for taking the time to share this knowledge with all of us.
Hi Riley,
I am sad to hear that you have been hacked before. I hope it was long ago and you were able to recover your accounts and information.
They say hindsight is 20/20 and even though that didn't save you the pain of having our information taken from you, hopefully it will keep you safe in the future. And who knows, maybe you will be able to save someone else from these struggles and they can learn from your mistakes.
Wishing you all the best,
Samantha