You've Been Conned

Or maybe not. Here’s how to wise up to the scamming scourge.

- Colin Cullis

Humans have been scamming each other since ancient times, but the internet has turned it into an industry. Odds are you’ve fallen for one of the many scams out there, and if you haven’t, and firmly believe you never will, do beware as you’ll be even better target. Scammers use confidence as part of their formula.

But that’s not all. Whether our reasons for acting on a ‘great deal’ are based on greed or kindness, we need to know that scams rely on us feeling we have limited time to act. Also, we are most likely to get scammed when our emotions rule our thinking, and that happens when we see something we really want. Despite thinking it looks too good to be true, greed and desire win over any misgivings and move us to act.

As humans we think, feel and act. We might like to think that we think before we act, but sometimes we feel and then act, and any thinking done afterwards we use to justify our actions. Think about that for a moment and let the penny drop. Scammers know exactly how to press that button to short-circuit our rational self.

I’m sure most of you are lovers of travel, so allow me to assume that a fantastic offer to visit a unique destination at a great rate sees you act on the desire to go. You might only be asked to provide some personal information for a draw for that amazing holiday, but before you know it you’ve submitted info to ensure an endless flood of unwanted emails and phone calls. Worse still, you’ve made a deposit on a holiday that turns out to be non-existent.

Nothing new about that. In the US, where robocalls (automated computer phone calls) are flooding people’s phones, often illegally, the odds of being offered such a scam are increasing. Nearly 30-million travel-related scam calls offering free or discounted travel