Beware online fraudsters
It’s a jungle out there for older folks looking to meet potential partners. But, thanks to the rise of dating sites and social media platforms, connecting online can seem like a promising garden of roses — if only there weren’t so many thorns.
Companionship conveyed through fingertips floating over keyboards can become incredibly intimate, but it’s also fraught with risks.
The romance or friendship scam is number one for seducing victims, according to Paula Naka, manager of risk management at Interior Savings in Kelowna.
Naka and Const. Ann Donnelly, a fraud investigator with the Kelowna RCMP, recently educated the public with a talk called Knowledge is Power: Avoiding Fraud and Identity Theft.
It’s one of many free talks on offer for the fifth annual Embrace Aging month, a community collaboration of UBC Okanagan’s Institute for Healthy Living and Chronic Disease Prevention, Interior Savings, and Interior Health.
“Social media opens up all kinds of venues to meet people from all over the world,” Naka explained.
Fraudsters take advantage of this accessibility, working to gain trust and to establish relationships. Gleaning information from their victims, fraudsters play upon a person’s weaknesses, wants, habits and hobbies. Modern-day con artists, they’re often smart, charming and very patient.
“The longest relationship I’ve seen went on for seven years,” Donnelly said. “It took that long for the person to realize they were being defrauded of thousands of dollars.”
We all like to think we’d never be so gullible, but take writer Sofija Stefanovic, author of You’re Just Too Good to Be True, who got involved with her own scammer in the name of research.
On theguardian.com, Stefanovic explained how even she fell for her scammer’s charm. The scammer sent photos (stolen online) so a face could be attached to the name. After discovering Stefanovic loved World Cup soccer, the scammer got right into it, just so the two could talk sports. Always ready and waiting online with a “hi, babe,” the scammer was highly attentive and complementary, eventually convincing Stefanovic to send her own photos.
“I love your cute smile, your magical eyes and the sound of your words,” her scammer cooed. “Can I call you?”
Then it happened. The scammer desperately needed $140 to avoid eviction.
Stefanovic offered to send money if her new friend would just admit to the play, but that was met with outrage as the scammer feigned hurt that Stefanovic didn’t really care.
Relationships in which the victim knows he or she is being scammed and yet continues to supply cash are not uncommon. Apparently, we are lonely creatures, and the best way to safeguard our bank accounts and protect our hearts is to be informed and, yes, skeptical.
Tricksters always have a sob story, often involving a sick loved one. Even if they want you to go in on a promising investment, they really have only one person’s interest in mind, and it’s not yours.
Another popular trick is the emergency scam, lately in the news.
“Someone phones you or emails you saying, ‘I’m your grandchild and I’m in Mexico and my wallet was stolen,’” explained Naka. “The scam artist uses a muffled voice or puts someone on the line claiming to be in a position of authority, like a police officer.”
They will ask for the money to be wired and it has to be top-secret.
Always trying to stay a step ahead, fraudsters are now asking for things like gift cards.
Pay up with an iTunes card? Yep, scammers will suggest you can get money to the person in need by purchasing an iTunes card, and it’s not because the scammer wants to buy more apps. All they need is the number on the back of the card to sell it at a discount. And with hundreds of millions of iPhone users all over the world, “it’s as close to universal currency as you can get,” according to firstorion.com.
Heard of phishing? Pronounced “fishing,” it’s when the fraudster sends out an email purporting to be a reputable company, duplicating letterhead and logos to make it look official. What they’re really after is your credit card number or personal passwords.
Similar is vishing, which is a fraudulent phone call or voice mail.
“Probably 90 per cent of this kind of stuff is coming from outside Canada,” Donnelly said, “because it is so much harder to trace and RCMP don’t have jurisdiction to do anything.”
And here’s the problem: once you hit send, kiss your cash goodbye.
“RCMP can investigate, but your money is gone,” said Donnelly.
Sadly, once bitten isn’t always twice shy in the world of fraud. If you’ve fallen for a previous scam, your name is on a hit list — aptly called the “suffer list”— that gets passed around. You’ll get a call from someone promising to retrieve your lost money — for a small fee.
“It’s marketing,” said Naka. “This is a scammer’s day job. They’re good at it.”
The list of scams is as long as criminals are creative. For more insight and tips for preventing scamming and identity theft, get your free copy of The Little Black Book of Scams by visiting competitionbureau.gc.ca or call 1-800-348-5358.
For more on Embrace Aging month, visit OkanaganEmbraceAging.com.
Shannon Linden writes a blog, magazine articles and grocery lists. Visit her at shannonlinden.ca.