Nasty Scams You Want To Watch Out For

Image Source

As much as we wish life was flying unicorns, cakes for breakfast, sleeping in cloud-like beds and never shedding a tear, it’s not. There are little niggles, hiccups, bumps and lumps that we need to do battle with more and more, and a prime example of this are scams. It’s something we all have to be wary of and dodge on a day to day basis nowadays, and it totally sucks. But playing ignorant is not going to save you, which is why we want to do a little post on the topic and focus on the kind of consumer scams that we are all susceptible to.

The reason for this is simple: just this morning, we received an email receipt from Uber for a fare that apparently cost is $329.42. That sort of thing has become commonplace, but it still makes us wonder what the angle is, whether our card was used or whether this is the scam itself. It’s frustrating and frightening. 

So, without further ado, here is a list of the most prolific scams out there right now. If knowledge is power, hopefully, your journey through laugh will see these nasty people wasting their time with you and everyone else, as you stand your ground.

1. Jackpotting

Believe it or not,  hackers have found a way to hijack ATMs so that they then spew out cash, and they do it with bad actors disguised as repairmen who then install some sort of malicious software that causes the machine to cough up all its cash. So, if you see a machine that’s clearly haywiring, you can guarantee it’s been hacked. 

2. Secretary of State

Another scam that has been doing the rounds is regarding an email from Rex Tillerson, former Secretary of State, emailing people with regards to an $1.85 million payment that you are owed after being falsely investigated by both the FBI and the CIA. The hope is you’ll believe these fakes are official government officials and hand over your details so that you can claim your compensation. Don’t do it. 

3. Disability Insurance Fraud

We received information from LongTermDisabilityLawyer.com about more and more people receiving long-term disability benefits even though they are unusually healthy. And it’s a worry. These people are claiming they can’t work their desk job, but there are photos of them all over Instagram of them at Disney World last week. Trust us: disability fraud is a very severe and illegal move to make. 

4. Shimmer Scam

Another one that is reportedly on the rise involves thieves "skimming" your ATM card and stealing your details from the magnetic strip (yes, that strip does something). This is where fraudsters use devices called "shimmers", popping them in the card slots at ATMs and then take your card data from the chip, which can then be used to create a clone of your card and rack up charges. It’s dreadful but very real. 

5. Phishing

Email phishing is still a big scam and one that is getting more sophisticated by the minute. Like we aid, we received one from “Uber”, while fraudsters have been pretending to be Apple and Amazon over the years too. The problem is, they look so real these emails. Thankfully, clicking on their email address will display one that’s far from legit. That’s how to test.