Some professions have been around since the dawn of time. Sadly, not all of them are in place for the good of society. Many of them have nothing worthwhile to contribute, instead, they do the complete opposite and can truly be a stain on society. One of these so-called “professions” is scamming. Some people have been figuring out crafty ways to take advantage of others throughout history, yet now with the internet, the possibilities for these individuals are almost endless.
While governments try to implement strategies in place for these types of mishaps to be avoided, the reality is that in the vastness of the online world many are bound to slip through the cracks. Here are some of the most common ways these criminals use the internet to steal the money honest hard-working people make.
Fake Prizes and Jackpots
While in the last couple of years this has become somewhat of a rarity, there are people out there that are still getting swindled out of bundles of money through fake real money gaming websites. These websites are usually the result of multiple individuals working together. They create links and advertisements that feature false claims such as “you’ve won a huge jackpot”, or “play this to win one million dollars”. These links usually end up being malware that can steal personal and banking information you have on your device.
Legitimate real money gaming websites in most cases don’t look very similar to the ones created by scammers. Furthermore, they offer proof of legitimacy such as licenses and independent audits that people can check freely. Unlike these common scams, the real websites offer a wide range of playable games, great progressive jackpots, and dedicated customer service to make your visit as pleasant as possible.
Social Media and Online Dating
Social media was invented to bring us closer together and establish relationships between people all over the world. What once was done through regular mail, which could take a long time, can now be done in a matter of seconds. We all know the power that social media can have, and some people misuse this power for their personal gain. With the fast rise of social media and dating apps, catfishing started to expand and people realized how easy it was to create a false identity.
The people that use false identities to gain people’s trust and ultimately take money from others or blackmail them with personal information are called catfish. While there are a lot of ways to check if someone is who they say they are online, these people can be cunning and manipulative enough to find ways around that. You should always make sure that the people you’re talking to online are who they say they are, and under no circumstances should you send them money if you’re unsure of their identity.
E-Mail Scams
These are possibly the most common online scams out there. E-mail scams can be very similar to fake real money gambling websites. These e-mails consist of false claims that you’ve either won something or have inherited something from a distant relative that passed. They can ask you for personal and banking information that they then use to steal money from you, or they may ask you to send them money to a specific account in order to receive your prize.
These can be avoided very easily since the contents of the e-mails are very impersonal and far-fetched. In any case if you’re worried about overusing the internet for communication after reading this article, you can always use your phone, or even your local post office that’s always ready and waiting to help you with your postal needs.
About The Author
Nicole Hinton
Nicole is a freelancer & passionate blogger. She has 4+ years of experience in digital marketing and specialize in content writing, content marketing and organic search engine optimization. She has worked with many brands from Canada as well as the USA. Currently, she manages content marketing team of freelancers and doing their business efficiently.
