COMPUTER SCAMS

by Rebecca Kimbel

Computer scams are increasing. Even computers with high density fire walls have been penetrated by the scam artist’s who obtain e mail lists circulated to groups, organizations and other social common bonds of their victims. Scams present themselves to your computer as a friend whose name they have taken from the list. E mail from a friend is accepted by your computer. You open it. The scammer claims a dire circumstance has befallen the friend they are now pretending to be. They may claim that they are traveling in a foreign country and someone has stolen their wallet, credit cards, and other identity and they are desperately in need of your help. They tell you that they are about to be thrown out of their hotel, they can’t buy food or get back home. They beg you to send a large sum of money by Western Union to the address they give in the name of your friend.

When you try to block these messages on your computer, it doesn’t work. They keep on coming because when you block a message you only block one computer that sent it. There is an entire network of these cons sending the same message from several computers.About this time, you call your friend. She never left town. She tells you this e mail has reached people she went to school with, people who knew her in other countries and an entire circle of her social life. She tells you she dropped her e mail account, turned the information in to the proper authorities and everything she knew to resolve this, but she doesn’t have the e mail list the scam artist has, so she has no idea of the number of people getting the e mails. Her credibility has been destroyed. For her the emotional devastation is tremendous.

Con artists use some dramatic misfortune as a hook. If you take it they will believe they have a sucker and they will reel you in. The internet is a sea of opportunity for those looking for prey to feed upon. They justify their behavior because it works. The scams are not limited to any particular group. They are wide spread. Even dating sites are common places to hunt the unsuspecting. When a stranger, a person you know only through e mails, or a person masquerading as a friend, wants to get you involved in financial dealings with them, take a second look. You could be treading on thin ice. Watch your emotional response. When something sounds too awful, too much or too good to be true, it probably is. Trust should be earned through actions not wasted on words. Protect your self from computer scams.

Rebecca Kimbel ~ Motivational Speaker

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