Insurance Fraud

This is clearly at the top of the list of things we fall prey to. This is because you can insure everything, so scammers have lots of opportunities to find victims. People want to insure the special things in their lives, including their possessions, vehicle, home, and even family members, and it’s hard to imagine that you could be scammed while doing so, but it’s true. You need to be very careful and only use legitimate insurance companies. Make sure you do plenty of research before deciding which one to use.

If you are part of insurance fraud, the company (which might not be a company at all) will inform you the essentials of what will be taken care of, and this could sound great, but they will leave out all of the critical details, such as the fact that you will not be covered for certain items that are more likely to break, and there will be so many terms and conditions to a payment that you will have to complete before you get any money.

Investment Scams

It’s easy to get too enthused and excited about an investment. You get the impression that you will earn a lot of money and that the concept is basic and straightforward. Scammers will prey on this excitement and not go into a lot of detail, simply taking your money and telling you that they are investing it in the right places. However, a lot of the time, they will disappear, and you’ll be left with nothing. If they do invest anything, it’s doubtful that it will make any kind of return, and again, you’ll be out of pocket. You’ll be informed that the investment did not work out, and they’ll just keep your money.

If you want to get started in investments, it’s best to speak to a good broker with plenty of reviews. Ask for recommendations from friends and family too.

Social Media Scams 

Most people have at least one social media account, and many have more than one. These accounts are a lot of fun, allowing you to connect with family and friends, make new friends, and be involved in groups and communities. However, there is a dark side to social media, and one of the issues is scams.

Whether it’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or even Whatsapp scams, you can easily get caught out. In the most common scam, you’ll receive a message from someone who appears to be your friend. They’ll say they’re in trouble and need money. However, this is just a clone account, and your money will be stolen. If you ever get a message like this, phone your friend to ensure they need your help.

An Unexpected Attachment 

In this kind of scam, scammers get access to one of your colleagues’ email accounts or social media accounts and send bogus emails or direct messages to all of their connections. They often include an attachment or a link to a bogus file-sharing website and request that you download a file from there. If you download the files, they will install harmful malware on your computer, encrypting all of your genuine data and keeping them for ransom.

If a contact sends you an unexpected attachment or a link to a file-sharing website, do not open it. Instead, contact that person directly – preferably via a different route than the one through which you got it, in case they have been hacked – and inquire about the file and whether or not they meant to transmit it.

An Unexpected Friend Request 

For this one, a scammer copies a friend’s social network profile and then adds you. When you agree, the con artist has access to personal information that may be used to hack into your financial accounts, such as your birthdate, parents’ names, and pet names. They may also send out harmful links that you might be tempted to click on, as well as money demands.

Accepting friend requests from strangers is not a good idea. If someone you already know joins you as a friend, contact them offline to check whether or not they have a second account. Online, do not reveal any confidential information that might be used to crack your bank’s security questions. Whether you travel out of town, don’t write about it until you get back; you never know if one of your friends’ accounts has been hijacked.

A Free Wifi Hotspot

This scam is quite a new one, so watch out for it. A thief creates an open-access wifi hotspot at a coffee shop, airport, or other public place and connects it to their laptops. When you log in, this individual has access to your computer and mines it for financial and personal information.

To prevent it, follow these steps: check your computer and phone settings to ensure that your device does not automatically join open wifi networks. Turn on the “Ask to join new networks” option. Unless you are actively utilizing wifi, keep it switched off. Before connecting to a wifi network at a private company, ask an employee what the right network name is. If you’re going to a public venue, such as an airport, look out for the name of the official wifi network ahead of time. You should conduct no financial transactions on any of these networks. If you travel regularly, consider purchasing a portable password-protected hotspot.