Spam and Scam • part 2

Last time, we shared real life scam stories. This month, I’ll offer basic suggestions to protect yourself.

Red Flags

• Unsolicited contact (call, text, email, or social media) demanding action right now.
• Unwarranted sense of urgency: Your bank won’t rupt. That super amazing investment deal can wait. The Nigerian prince is dead or he isn't. The IRS doesn’t keep local police on speed-dial.
• Pressure to pay with untraceable methods: wire transfers, gift cards, payment apps, or that dark mystery of cryptocurrency.
• Requests for personal or financial information.
• Offers that sound too good to be true.
• Stories that tug hard at your emotions.
• Poor grammar in ‘official’ messages.
• Discouraging verifying their story with a trusted source.
• URL links that look slightly off. For example,
• YoürBank.com instead of YourBank.com or
• YourBankHelp.com instead of YourBank.com.
• Be aware that emails and web pages may display a web site name with a clickable link that hides a sinister URL within the HTML. In other words, text on the web page may display YourBank.com, while the hidden web address might be www.NastyScams.com.

Practical Protection

• Pause and verify. If someone claims to be calling from your bank or the government, hang up and call back using the number on your bank statement or official web site, never one scammers provide.
• Think before you click. Hover over links to check the real address. Better yet, type in your bank’s address. Don’t trust conveniently provided URLs.
• Block and filter. Use your phone’s built-in tools to silence unknown callers and enable spam-text filtering.
• Register with the national Do Not Call list. It’s imperfect, but it helps.
• Secure your accounts. Use strong, unique passwords and monitor statements weekly.
• Better yet, use lengthy passphrases. ‘Judges12:5-6SayNowShibboleth’ is much, much stronger than Shibboleth42k (or Sibboleth).
• Don’t provide real answers to so-called security questions. Never ever select your favorite color question. Lie to protect yourself. Favorite pet name? “Forget it, buddy.” Your first car? “Forget it, buddy.” Who’s buried in Grant’s tomb? “Forget it, buddy.”
• Most experts recommend using multi-factor authentication everywhere possible. I confess reluctance, having witnessed users losing access because of a forgotten passphrase. Nevertheless, pros urge using 2FA until something better comes along. You decide.
• Never urgently send money to ‘help’ a ‘family member’ without independent confirmation. Call them on a known number first.
• You receive a call from a Mexican jail claiming your grandchild is locked up but needs bail money. That can seem funny when your young relative is safely sitting on the sofa beside you, but it’s not funny in the middle of night when the caller sounds and acts exactly like your young relative and you have no idea where they are.
• Consider creating a family ‘safe word’ for emergencies.
• Do not download attachments from unknown sources.
• Be very cautious before downloading programs outside your app store.
• Help protect your family, especially trusting older relatives who are frequent targets.
• Know that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issues monthly advisories and alerts.

What to Do If You Suspect a Scam

• Act fast, but don’t be stampeded into recklessness before you can verify a caller’s story.
• Contact your bank or credit-card issuer immediately to freeze or reverse transactions.
• Report incidents at ReportFraud.ftc.gov . The FTC uses reports to track patterns and pursue criminals.
• If you shared personal data, place a fraud alert with credit bureaus and monitor your credit report.
• For tech-support or investment scams, additional help is available through the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (www.IC3.gov).

Scammers count on fear, greed, kindness, and time crunches to cloud judgment. They operate by script, intent of fooling a profitable percentage of ‘suckers’. Don’t be a sucker. Slowing down, asking questions, and trusting instincts breaks their playbook. Every report you file helps shut down operations and protects others. Stay vigilant, talk openly about scams with friends and family, and remember: legitimate organizations will never rush you into sending money or sharing sensitive information.

For more resources, visit consumer.ftc.gov or consumer.gov. Awareness is the best defense. Spread the word and stay safe.