Scammers and Quick Advice to Stay Safe from Phishing
Sep 01, 2024
The new school year has just started and with the holidays fast approaching, it is primetime for scammers to try and take advantage of others with phishing.
The McGrail Foundation wants to help make you aware of a few key tactics that you might see in email but also in other ways including calls and text messages.
The most common scamming tactic is to induce a sense of urgency in the victim to get you to think emotionally instead of logically.
An example might be to fake an emergency while posing as an important governmental organization like the IRS, Social Services, your child’s school, the Sheriff’s office, etc.
Another tactic is to pretend that whatever the scammer is offering is a unique one-time deal that once they are no longer on the phone is gone forever. This tactic can be seen even by non-scammers in marketing that invokes a feeling of FOMO or a Feeling of Missing Out. Again, they are trying to get you to act emotionally.
A final tactic to make you aware of is targeted scams where they may have some real personal information that they obtained improperly. These days just because someone knows your name, birthday, and spouse, it doesn't mean as much as too often that can be found from a simple internet search.
To mitigate most scams, take your time. NEVER give out credit card details, bank information, or pay for anything with a gift card unless you are 100% sure. If you aren’t sure, do more research and most scams will unravel with a little time.
