OT scams and how to recognise them

[MadAmster]

We probably all get them from time to time. Some maybe more so than others. Here are a few of the ones I've had in the past (first one arrived this morning)

1. Written in Dutch, "Wij zijn meneer en mevrouw Webster, we hebben een donatie voor u ter waarde van 5.000.000 miljoen dollar. we hebben de America powerball-jackpot van 316,3 miljoen dollar gewonnen, en we doneren een deel ervan aan 5 gelukkige mensen en liefdadigheidsorganisaties om God te waarderen voor onze winst."

Red flags. Webster? Likely Americans considering they've "won" the American powerball lottery. Why then write to a random hotmail account in Dutch?

For more info I should contact tammycliff56@gmail.com - why would the Webster's have me contact them via Tammy? The original email is from a Mali based email address.

I get similar ones to the one above regularly and I never follow up Add them all up over the past 5 years and I may well have thrown > a billion away

2. Credit card company saying there's an issue with my card and "hit this link" to resolve it. Always go to your card company site but NOT via the link in the email. There's never an issue. The link is to give the sender access/information. I even get them from "companies" whose card I don't have. Never click on the link. Always go to the company site. I also forward the mail to my CC company so they can at least block the scammer and maybe even track them down and get them arrested.

3. Computer security packages that expire. Obviously, I ignore ones form McAfee as I don't have McAfee. The one I do have, I know exactly when my subscription expires so I ignore that as well

4. iCloud and other "storage in the sky" packages get full. I don't have any of them so that's not a problem

5. Banks. As with Credit cards in 2 above. Never hit the link. Always type the address in the address bar or use your own shortcut. This applies to 2 above as well. The real financial institute will always start with a Greeting line containing your name. the scammers don't. Also be wary of letters used. For instance does your bank's genuine address contain an a that is written as an ɑ in the email?

6.Others I get are from folk who have "installed malware on my computer". They know which nasty videos I've been watching and/or they have video of me being a F*r*st fan (aka a ****er) and if I don't deposit x amount of ******* into the wallet number contained in the email, they will publish all online so all my friends can see...... I'm obviously on an email address list that gets sold from time to time on the dark web. I ignore them knowing that the videos dont exist.



As I said. There are loads of scams. If you have any not covered in my post, feel free to share.

[MadAmster]

Heard of a new one today. A variant on the text from one of your kids whose lost their phone, got a new one and need money depositing to a particular bank account immediately (I got my first one of those recently but the synonym used for "father" was not one my kids would use).

The variant is one that has popped up in the USA. The preps used AI on a few voice fragments and cloned the sound of a girl's voice. They used the cloned voice to have a panicky "daughter" phone her parents saying she'd been kidnapped. The parents believed the voice to be that of their daughter and paid the ransom. Daughter comes home later and, of course, knows absolutely nothing about the scam as she's been at school/work all day.

So, you get such a call. Do you hang up on your "kidnapped daughter" so you can ring back and check that she has, genuinely, been taken? I don't think many would. Be careful out there, AI is making the world less safe...

[Andy_Faber]

Heard of a new one today. A variant on the text from one of your kids whose lost their phone, got a new one and need money depositing to a particular bank account immediately (I got my first one of those recently but the synonym used for "father" was not one my kids would use).

The variant is one that has popped up in the USA. The preps used AI on a few voice fragments and cloned the sound of a girl's voice. They used the cloned voice to have a panicky "daughter" phone her parents saying she'd been kidnapped. The parents believed the voice to be that of their daughter and paid the ransom. Daughter comes home later and, of course, knows absolutely nothing about the scam as she's been at school/work all day.

So, you get such a call. Do you hang up on your "kidnapped daughter" so you can ring back and check that she has, genuinely, been taken? I don't think many would. Be careful out there, AI is making the world less safe...

I would, we have secret words/phrases/actions. But yes, the world is becoming less safe

[ramAnag]

I would, we have secret words/phrases/actions. But yes, the world is becoming less safe

Is it? I wonder. It’s a bit of a trade off admittedly but, generally speaking, haven’t mobile phones probably made the world a little safer.
There are scams, I know...though you’d have to be quite gullible to fall for some of those above.
On the whole I feel mobile technology has made people safer in the event of breakdown or other incident.

[MadAmster]

Bit of both, rA and AF.

Breakdown. Yes. Some other incidents, Yes.

Scams. Absolutely not. There are myriads of different scams that wouldn't be possible without technology, mobile or "static". AI is only making the scams more credible which is highly likely to see more scams being successful.

[ramAnag]

Bit of both, rA and AF.

Breakdown. Yes. Some other incidents, Yes.

Scams. Absolutely not. There are myriads of different scams that wouldn't be possible without technology, mobile or "static". AI is only making the scams more credible which is highly likely to see more scams being successful.

Sorry, in a different time zone for the rest of the month...makes debate more delayed.

Of course you’re right and there are loads of scams that utilise modern technology. It’s also possibly true that technology and the abundance of screens that dominate our lives have made people more anti social, but overall I’d still maintain that the positives of mobile phones outweigh the negatives and that, so long as we don’t just judge by the lowest common denominators, that mobile phones offer a major contribution to public safety.

[Geoff Parkstone]

I think I'm in the less positives camp. Yes it helps the stranded motorist or the lone person from predators etc. But the tech opens up your entire personal wealth to the scammers, and in particular the most vulnerable in society to that risk.

Overall thought, like the arguments that guns don't kill people, people do, tech doesn't scam people, people do.

[Andy_Faber]

haven’t mobile phones probably made the world a little safer.

I think not, although it could be argued that the rise in mobile phone usage and the world becoming less safe have occurred in parallel but are unconnected

One pretty obvious negative is that before the days of mobile phones you couldn't be mugged for your mobile phone

[ramAnag]

I think not, although it could be argued that the rise in mobile phone usage and the world becoming less safe have occurred in parallel but are unconnected

One pretty obvious negative is that before the days of mobile phones you couldn't be mugged for your mobile phone

True...but you could for your watch, wallet, bike, car or house keys and I wouldn’t want to have done without those.

Think GP has it about right but I’m really not arguing with you. Personally I’m quite pleased mobile phones weren’t around when I was younger would have almost been like being ‘tagged’...but from the point of view of breaking down or my wife or daughter’s safety when out alone I’m thankful they’re around now. Like most things...just a case of swings and roundabouts.

Schools are a classic example. They’re probably the bane of every teacher’s life and, imo, should be handed into the office, as soon as every pupil enters school, to be returned only at the end of each day. On the other hand they’re a ‘godsend’ as far as pupil safety on the route home is concerned and I’m grateful my eldest grandchild - the only one who makes his own way to and from school - has one.

[SithHappens]

I am glad they weren't about, although might have stopped some arguments with my Parents when i still lived at home, for some reason on a Friday or Saturday night if i'd met someone and was going to be 'late' they thought it reasonable i should go find a phone box and ring them and let them know (yeah imagine it, erm just gonna ring my mum and let her know ill be late). So a mobile might have been handy to send a quick text lol.

They are good obviously but so intrusive and this is more about behaviours, the number of times someone will when having an old fashioned face to face chat with someone just suddenly stop when the phone pings and read whats said, then reply, totally ignoring the other person. They certainly have brought out a rudeness in people who seem attached to them.

On Scams, must admit havent seen one yet thats taken me in but can understand how older people might get taken in more. The way i see it is if something is that important then no one is going to email or text you about it, and if it is and they did its their look out not mine.