Skams

[Marshall]

There are a bunch out there. Every once in a while, I'll get an email saying something like,"We have approved your purchase of xyz for $575 (or something) on your Paypal account. If this is inaccurate, call this 800 number."

Either on PayPal or a credit card.

So, what I do, is go to my PayPal acccount or my credit card account and see if there's any unauthorized activity on them. And of course there is not. But I will never call the 800 number or follow any of their directions.

Scammers.

[majorminor]

If I were in charge there would be a government subsidized wood chipper in every town square and the town would gather to see and cheer as a few of these scammer dudes/dudettes would be tossed in the chipper on the third Saturday of every month. There would be a big potluck and the wood fired personal pizza food truck would be there. Maybe even the guy with the big pink smoker that looks like a pig doing ribs and brisket. The world would not only be a better place but think of the jobs created at the wood chipper, squeegee, and mulch factories!

[Marty]

Feb 1, 2024 10:30:24 GMT -5 majorminor said:

If I were in charge there would be a government subsidized wood chipper in every town square and the town would gather to see and cheer as a few of these scammer dudes/dudettes would be tossed in the chipper on the third Saturday of every month. There would be a big potluck and the wood fired personal pizza food truck would be there. Maybe even the guy with the big pink smoker that looks like a pig doing ribs and brisket. The world would not only be a better place but think of the jobs created at the wood chipper, squeegee, and mulch factories!

Since I hear about bank fraud and wire transfer scams every day that is not too far off my solution to the problem.

Never:
pay anyone that says they are from the government, it don't work that way.

pay if they want crypto, bitcoin or gift cards.

send money to Mexico or Hong Kong without checking twice, then check again. Even if it's fraud you can't get your money back.

anyone that is giving you an unbelievable deal if you don't know them.

Sorry this one is a stereotype but none the less true, if the sound like they are from India. Take the time to check it first.

[Tamarack]

I have been heeding Marty's advice and never answering "yes" when I take a phone call from an unknown number. (This applies to local calls that are usually legit; if it's from out of state and I don't recognize the number, I ignore it. If it's legit they can leave a voicemail.)

[epaul]

That million dollars I was supposed to get for helping out that Nigerian Princess only amounted to $470,000 after taxes and those bogus handling fees. Talk about a skam!

[Cosmic Wonder]

I thought Skam was some sort of Norwegian cheese product.

Mike

[John B]

Feb 1, 2024 11:16:47 GMT -5 Cosmic Wonder said:

I thought Skam was some sort of Norwegian cheese product.

Mike

I'm pretty sure it's like Spam, only with reindeer.

[drlj]

Skams are those shoes you just slip on without having to lace them.

[TKennedy]

www.cnn.com/2024/02/04/asia/deepfake-cfo-scam-hong-kong-intl-hnk/index.html

[Marty]

Feb 1, 2024 10:45:18 GMT -5 Tamarack said:

I have been heeding Marty's advice and never answering "yes" when I take a phone call from an unknown number. (This applies to local calls that are usually legit; if it's from out of state and I don't recognize the number, I ignore it. If it's legit they can leave a voicemail.)

Correct. Hello is this Don T? Never answer YES or No, ask who is calling first. If they must have your affirmation before talking to you they may be trying to record you saying Yes. They are trying to get your voice recorded for a verbal agreement and will later extort money from you to avoid legal fees.

[Marty]

Feb 4, 2024 9:21:25 GMT -5 TKennedy said:

www.cnn.com/2024/02/04/asia/deepfake-cfo-scam-hong-kong-intl-hnk/index.html

Hong Kong law protects the scammers and you have to hire a Hong Kong lawyer to get your money back. It will cost you roughly $10k to go through the court process.

[drlj]

Feb 4, 2024 9:22:31 GMT -5 Marty said:

Feb 1, 2024 10:45:18 GMT -5 Tamarack said:

I have been heeding Marty's advice and never answering "yes" when I take a phone call from an unknown number. (This applies to local calls that are usually legit; if it's from out of state and I don't recognize the number, I ignore it. If it's legit they can leave a voicemail.)

Correct. Hello is this Don T? Never answer YES or No, ask who is calling first. If they must have your affirmation before talking to you they may be trying to record you saying Yes. They are trying to get your voice recorded for a verbal agreement and will later extort money from you to avoid legal fees.

I alway answer calls by saying, “Marty Reynold’s residence. Yes, yes it is. Happy to answer your questions. Yes, yes I am!”

[Dub]

I pay to use an app called Robokiller. It screens all my calls and takes voicemail too. For scammers they have a choice of responses that are designed to waste as much of the scammer’s time as possible.

Only numbers already in my contacts get automatically passed through to me. Bots often hang up before the answering message completes.

[Marty]

Feb 4, 2024 9:26:13 GMT -5 drlj said:

Feb 4, 2024 9:22:31 GMT -5 Marty said:

Correct. Hello is this Don T? Never answer YES or No, ask who is calling first. If they must have your affirmation before talking to you they may be trying to record you saying Yes. They are trying to get your voice recorded for a verbal agreement and will later extort money from you to avoid legal fees.

I alway answer calls by saying, “Marty Reynold’s residence. Yes, yes it is. Happy to answer your questions. Yes, yes I am!”

So that's why I keep getting cases of free cookies!