Reply to: No matter .. how tech savvy they are, anyone can fall victim to a scam

[TheDude]

Currently using a ceramic heater its better than a straight fan heater. 400w is enough to heat the garden office.

What happens when the garden office stops burning?

[vetran]

Currently using a ceramic heater its better than a straight fan heater. 400w is enough to heat the garden office.

[xoggoth]

I agree it's ridiculous that Google and Facebook allow so many scam adverts

Lots of other sites including the online press. Small heaters that heat your room in 5 minutes, car plug ins that greatly reduce your fuel usage, fantastic ways of making thousands a week promoted by "Lord Sugar" or Oprah Winfree".

[TheDude]

Credit card fraud doesn't exist here in Essex because everybody carries a massive wad of fifties in their wallet.

[agentzero]

I fell for a scam site top of the Google list for renewing a passport. Paid them £50 or whatever it was but turns out all they did was apply on my behalf. I then needed to pay the actual fee with the real passport office. I always check for the gov.uk in the web address now.

I agree it's ridiculous that Google and Facebook allow so many scam adverts. Particularly Facebook selling dodgy investments and the like. If I can spot them a mile off they could easily remove them with an algorithm. They're complicit in scamming folk.

Think wider.

For Passports and the DVLA, the scam wasn't charging you £50 to fill the form out on your behalf. The scam was: now they have your full passport details, including name, address history, National Insurance code, and other personal details that can be used for identity theft. They've also now got valid payment details for you, unless you cancel it, meaning they can add that into the mix when paying for some expensive item online using your billing details but deliver to another address.

This can also include extracting money into cryptocurrency. Russia and China are very involved in these scam websites, as they are so profitable in terms of crypto and personal details. They're getting the personal details for very little effort on their part.

[xoggoth]

Long time ago I did find out that mortgage payments were coming out of a savings account but think that was just a cock up rather than fraud. Bank soon stopped it and put the money back.

These days I always check my accounts and credit card every month to see if anything unexpected.

[d000hg]

I don't think I've ever been scammed though I have noticed incorrect CC transactions and had to report them a couple of times, that the bank didn't pick up.

I have probably come fairly close a few times, like the first time I saw one of those very convincing DHL/DPD type same emails where it all looks normal until you notice the URL is www.dpd.scam.co.uk, because I always hover over an URL before clicking. Those are the ones that worry me because even a lot of tech-savvy people could miss it.

I've had one of those "we know your password is 'ILoveFishCakes' and will be releasing your details unless you pay" and was quite concerned, until I twigged all it means is they found a compromised email/password in a crack database online.

Scammers are getting smarter and I totally agree anyone could be caught, it only takes a momentary lapse.

[Gibbon]

I nearly fell for the delivery scam, as with others have a lot of deliveries, but I was too tight to pay. I started to fill in some personal details and then thought 'feck you, I ain't paying, I'll cancel and re-order'.

[xoggoth]

Warning, don't click on www.blahblah.gov.uk above, it's a scam!

[Paracelsus]

Nah, never been scammed.But growing up with computers in the 90s, and continuing to be heavily involved with them since, I can sniff out a tech scam like a bloodhound.

I feel bad for the two groups of people who I assume are most likely to fall victim to them;
a) old people who never caught on to computers, and basically don't know how any of it works
b) younger people who have grown up with the details blissfully abstracted away from them. They get an email from 'Currys PC World' about a prize they've won, and they have no idea that what's in the 'from' section isn't even an email address - and even if they did, you have to jump through hoops on a phone to actually get the header. A lot of them don't know what a URL is - they just put 'blahblah' into Google and click the first link, and a good percentage probably don't know what a file is either, other than athing on their phone. A relative of mine fell for the classic DVLA scam of searching for 'sorn car', clicking the advert at the top and paying £50 for the privilege, because they have no idea what a URL is. And I've noticed adverts/govt notices are aware of this and even advertise to 'search for xxxx on the web' instead of 'go to www.blahblah.gov.uk', which doesn't help.

[ladymuck]

Friend of mine is in CID and does a lot with credit card scams and skimming. One of their favourites was working out that some stolen card details had been used on Groupon to buy a massage. Popped down to the establishment, got the Groupon voucher put on an alert list. The proprietor called them up when the voucher was used to book a treatment. My friend turned up before the appointment time and just looked like a punter waiting in line. Perp was nicked as soon as they identified themselves to the staff.

I've not yet fallen for a scam but I have had my card skimmed about a decade ago and used to withdraw cash in Thailand. Bank noticed before I did on account of them considering it implausible that I'd be in Thailand and in a petrol station in Surrey at the same time. I know exactly where my card got skimmed (a different petrol station in Surrey) but I couldn't prove it.

[swamp]

I don't carry or use a debit card for anything other than paying the tax bill at the end of the year. For all payments I use credit cards. A few times there have been fraudulent transactions, but these have been quickly flagged up and wiped off. Recently I had to reclaim £500 under Section 75 for some flights -- can't do that on a debit card.

[northernladuk]

I once gave a recruiter the names of two previous managers as part of the 'process' of applying for a role.

OK I'll take what I said back then. Some people are stupid for falling for scams

[TheDude]

Anyone one here willing to admit they've been scammed?

I once gave a recruiter the names of two previous managers as part of the 'process' of applying for a role.

[northernladuk]

Don't understand how some scams continue. That one where your "bank" says your account is compromised and they'll send a courier round to collect your card. Nobody ever says ok and then calls the police or waits with hefty mates and a camera?

PS I did get one of those umpteen million pound transfer offers the other day. Not had one of those for years.

It's very frustrating the lack of effort put in to stopping them. Maybe we just don't see a ton of hard work going on in the background but I doubt it. Obviously it's very difficult to do on the net and the scammers are always one step ahead of everyone else so it will never go away.

When I had 7k spent on my card it was a proper job. They ordered three electric mountain bikes, paid for two meals, ordered posh ratan furniture online, booked a hotel for the weekend in the future and had two new tyres fitted on a car amongst other things. One of the bikes was ordered on the Isle of Man and someone actually went to pick it up. They had the car and the person on video, teh two meals had the same 4 people turn up to eat all on CCTV (couldn't believe the gaul of that one! Someone prepaid by phone so no pin needed) and they must have a host of addresses for the furnture and a ton of takeaways. Could have waited to see who turned up at the hotel and so on. Absolutely nothing got done. The credit card just went through the list of purchases, told me they'd contact the police and that was it. Not a finger lifted to investigate. I spoke to the restaurants and two of the bike companys and no one got in touch with them. The Isle of man company contacted the police independantly but again logged and no investigation.
Really unbelievable. Just pure open season to do it with absolutely zero risk of getting caught. Really frustrating period that was.