Inside the mind of a scam victim

Tony Levene highlights what scammers look for when searching for potential scam victims, and how to protect yourself

If you know the personal weaknesses scamsters want to exploit, you and your bank balance will be safer places.

In the second of this two-part “know your enemy” series, I look at those personal traits con artists try to use as levers to your money.

But be prepared to be shocked. Many would consider some of the items I list as examples of “decency” or “politeness”. Beware. The scamster's best weapon is the victim's desire to be reasonable, decent and polite. To avoid being a victim, strengthen your personal resolve and read on. Remember, “no” means safety.

The psycho-pathology of the victim

1) The disease to please

No, I don't mean “desire” - this is really a disease as many of us can't shake it off. As we go through life, we want to agree with others. It's easier and more pleasant than disagreement and discord. Most of us wanted to please our parents and our teachers. The scamster uses this addiction to earning the approval and acceptance of others so victims end up signing on the dotted line.

2) Fear of negative emotion

Psychologists apparently sometimes call this emotophobia. It means that we don't want to be rejected by anyone even if that person is a fraudster. Many people find they become miserable when they reject others. So they agree to almost anything.

3) Inability to say no

Finding someone with this inability is solid gold for conmen. After all, most who are targeted as potential victims will avoid losses as they do say “no” - often slamming the phone down or telling the caller to **** *** (expletives deleted!). The criminals are looking for a lack of assertiveness – although some victims will see this as politeness. Some of the biggest losers I have seen are really well-mannered people. As the Scam Magnet, I have to show a great inability to say no in order to get the scamsters to talk.

4) Probing the boundaries

Scammers will read a lot into your answers to their questions. If you show an inability to accept some people are cunning, devious and ruthless, then you are “in denial” of the realities of the world. Failing to understand this tells the fraudster that you are not that intelligent even if you are well off (remember, scamsters never target the poor or those with substantial debts!)

5) Greed

No one admits this but exploiting this weakness is one of the greatest weapons in the scamster armoury. Telling potential victims that if they keep their money where it is, they will do well to get 3% returns while the (scam) offer will offer huge returns is a winning formula (for the scammer, anyway). I have so often been told my money will rise by 50% to 100% over the next three to six months that I know this line by heart. If scamsters can find someone who is really greedy, then they have discovered a gold mine because greed blinds people to reality.

6) Materialism

This is similar to greed but can be exploited in a different way. Dodgy dealers will play on desires to have the latest car or a bigger home or the most desirable holidays. Materialism is most often used by pyramid sales organisations which dangle these items in front of potential victims because some people need the stimulus of goodies and fail to get excited by money which they see as just mere figures on a bank statement.

7) Immaturity

It does not matter how old someone is physically, they can have a lack of adult understanding. Immature people believe claims no matter how exaggerated they might be. They also fail to understand the relationship between risk and reward. Scamsters can test this by probing to see if victims equate money in the bank with money into their scheme.

8) Loneliness and dependency

There's not much the Scam Magnet can do if you are lonely. But if a scamster can discover this, it's another potential bonanza. They know lonely people will tend to stay on the phone longer and will want to be befriended. In some cases, fraudsters look at lonely hearts columns to find victims. Con artists will sometimes visit you at home – in a few cases, they will even move in so victims both lose their money and pay for the criminal's bed and board. Lonely and dependent people will say yes to deals which they should turn down so as not to lose their new “friend”.

9) Impulsive behaviour

Fraudsters look for people who plunge into arrangements, irrespective of the risks involved. Impulsive people don't want to consider the small print which will often have clues (or more blatant warnings) that the deal is a scam.

10) Being elderly

We can't reverse the ageing process. But being aware the elderly are top targets should help both elderly people themselves and their families to become more scam-aware. Older people can become tired more quickly and are more likely to agree to a deal. Many will be impressed by technology such as websites and by high finance. Most importantly, older people are more trusting so they are less likely to think that a sales pitch could be a criminal con.

Award-winning scams expert Tony Levene explains why he's writing a blog about scams and why he is The Scam Magnet!