Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that a Florida woman had been found guilty of criminal charges. fraud victim In online romance planning. In pleading guilty, she admitted laundering more than $2.7 million to overseas co-conspirators.
Although this criminal organization has been apprehended, the DOJ reports that there are many other criminal organizations as well and that these scams are increasing each year. Gone are the days of receiving a misspelled email from a deposed ‘Nigerian prince’ asking for money. Social scientists have discovered that fraudsters are using sophisticated social engineering techniques that are adaptable, realistic, and often irresistible.
How frequent are scams?
The emails of a Nigerian prince who needed money to restore his wealth and power seem almost outlandish compared to today’s con artists. In 2022, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will allow consumers to Approximately $8.8 billion in losses To fraud. The amount has increased by 30% since 2021, meaning people have become more vulnerable to fraud.
The scams included romance scams, where a scammer pretends to be someone romantically interested in the victim and starts asking for money. Scams include fake investments, fake sweepstakes, and tech support scams, where you contact an individual and are told there is a problem with your computer, and you pay a fee to fix it.
As technology advances, criminals are increasingly using deepfake videos or voice cloning to create crises involving family or friends. Typically, victims receive a call from a voice similar to that of their loved one saying they are stranded and need help getting home. Sometimes callers say they are in jail and need bail. By 2022, adults over 60 years of age 73% more likely This is more true than ever when young people report falling for such scams.
Read more: Understanding the Psychology of Catfish
Deception Deception
How do scammers succeed? In a 2022 study at American Journal of Criminal JusticeResearchers analyzed how victims described their interactions with scammers to identify patterns in how communication unfolded and how victims perceived it. Research shows that scammers use complex human psychology and proven principles of persuasion to scam their victims.
In the study, researchers analyzed accounts from fraud victims (n=52), all of whom were approached through social media sites such as Facebook or dating apps. The study found consistent themes in how victims reported their interactions with scammers.
One common strategy was for the scammer to initiate a back-and-forth with the victim. “Reciprocation leveraged victims’ sense of obligation through small gifts or gestures to foster trust and build emotional debt,” said Fangzhou Wang, lead author of the study and assistant professor of criminology at the University of Texas at Arlington. Criminal Justice.
For example, victims were given bouquets of flowers. I was surprised to see flower arrangements on Valentine’s Day. The victim wrote, “I admit it.” “I was completely scolded by this person.”
Creating a crisis was another manipulation technique where a scammer would claim to be in some kind of personal financial crisis and need urgent help.
“These strategies highlighted the fraudsters’ ability to exploit human psychology to achieve their goals,” says Wang.
Part of this exploitation involved weaponizing social norms, particularly the sense of obligation people felt when asking for help in times of crisis.
For example, one victim described how she believed she was experiencing an emergency where she could not pay her electricity bill because a woman she had spoken to online had reallocated funds to pay for her sick mother’s medication. She claimed there was no one other than the victim who could help her.
“If I could help her this time it would mean a lot to her,” the victim said. “Despite my anxiety, I sent her $100. That was all I had.”
Read more: 3 historical hoaxes that deceived the public, scientists, and the media
What are persuasion techniques?
In addition to appealing to social norms, scammers use established persuasion techniques to sell themselves to their victims. For example, likeability is a well-known factor in persuasion. Because people are more hesitant to reject someone they like. The scammers in the study worked overtime to like and empathize with their victims, which increased the likelihood that victims would make decision-making errors when asked to send them money.
Likewise, researchers have found that people are more likely to be persuaded by authority figures, and the study identified how deceivers rely on appeals to authority. Because people are socially conditioned to follow authority figures, scammers often send documents such as a doctor’s note, a letter from a bank official, or a notice from a government agency to support their claims.
For example, if a scammer claimed he needed $3,000 to pay customs duties to import gold bullion and promised to share it with the victim later, they produced an official letter with realistic-looking stamps and logos.
Fraudsters used a variety of strategies, and analysis showed that victims had complex and deep emotions about what happened.
“Many victims continued to rationalize or justify their relationship with the scammer even after disagreements arose,” Wang says.
How to avoid scammers
All of the victims in the study met the scammers online through social contexts such as Facebook or dating apps. In some cases, scammers and victims began communicating daily via phone calls and texts, which made the relationship feel real.
To avoid scammers, Wang advises people to be careful if they’ve met someone online and want to move communication outside the platform to text messages or phone calls.
Cheaters often declare their love early in communication, which Wang said should be considered a red flag. People should also be alert if a new “friend” asks for financial help with a crisis of any kind.
If a person feels the love is real, Wang recommends verifying their information. “Use reverse image search, check credentials, and see if they match the scammer’s claims,” she says.
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Emilie Lucchesi has written for some of America’s largest newspapers, including The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, and Los Angeles Times. She earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Missouri and a master’s degree from DePaul University. She also holds a Ph.D. in Communication from the University of Illinois at Chicago with a focus on media framing, message composition, and stigma communication. Emilie has written three nonfiction books. Her third work, A Light in the Dark: Surviving More Than Ted Bundy, out October 3, 2023, from Chicago Review Press, is co-written with survivor Kathy Kleiner Rubin.
