Unmasking Deception: The Shocking Truth Behind Your Favorite Facebook Writing Group’s Moderator
Red Flags to watch for:
- Someone who contacts you on social media directly, or in comments under an article asking you to PM them, or asking you to call them. They are ALWAYS scammers from overseas!
- Anyone who spams or cold-calls you. Seriously, anybody! One woman on Facebook said a scammer (who she was ignoring) looked up her name online, found her family members’ email addresses and phone numbers, and started contacting them because the author had not replied to his “PM” on Facebook. That’s how desperate they are! Yes, there are websites that list your name, your contact info., your relatives, and their contact info.
- They might want you to “Whatsapp” them. Some do give phone numbers but, when you do have a conversation, you know something is off. For example, you were expecting a woman but it’s a man. The person has a strong accent. You can sometimes hear people in the background (it’s a foreign call center!), Or, you call the number and nobody answers but they immediately call you back from a completely different number.
- Their command of your regional language (usually English) is off. WAY off!! If they have a heavy accent, or have syntax errors in their messages to you, it’s a scam.
- They want electronic money transfers as opposed to generally accepted methods of payment (though not always!). Some scammers will accept a credit card payment (the merchant name on your bill may show a completely different company name!) or they may accept Paypal. But, if you want a big refund, they’ll drain their accounts, and take off with the money before you get your refund.
- They become “flirty.” Don’t even get me started on the scammers who get all “romantic,” and convince the author to send them a “picture” (you know what I’m talking about!), and then they blackmail the author into sending them thousands while threatening to share that picture online, and destroy their lives. DON’T BE STUPID!!!
More creative research you can do:
