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FAQ - Internet Scams


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  • 10 months later...
[quote user="AnOther"]

Trouble is there are legions of numpties out there who WILL respond and as long as there are Phishing scams will continue.................[:-))]

The out and out ignorance and stupidity of the so called "man in the street" never ceases to astound me, all present company excepted I'm sure [;-)]

[/quote]

Those comments have got my hackles up so I must politely disagree.

Your "numpties" are invariably computer newbies which you were once, the innocent or in most cases the elderly who have been shown the very basics of using a computer by their family and untill now have lived a life of trusting everyone. And be assured when you're elderly you'll be caught out by a scam so sophisticated by todays standards you wont even know it's happened. We are all vulnerable to crime whatever form it takes and criticising the victims as "numpties" is shallow thinking.

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Hello mowerman, I see someone's been catching up on their back reading [:D]

[quote user="mowerman"]Your "numpties" are invariably computer newbies

which you were once, the innocent or in most cases the elderly who have

been shown the very basics of using a computer by their family and

until now have lived a life of trusting everyone.

[/quote]Invariably ?

On the contrary, there have been countless cases where ordinary, otherwise seemingly reasonably intelligent and sane people of all ages and levels of online experience, have been sucked into all sorts of completely obvious scams. I think you do the elderly a disservice too by portraying them as naive. I would say that these days they are probably amongst the most cautious and unless specifically mentally feeble are only too well aware that the days of trusting everyone are long since past.

Also, as far as I'm concerned anyone who let's an elderly relative loose on the Internet without adequately warning them of the dangers has to qualify as both a numptie and criminally stupid to boot.

Thank you for predicting my future BTW, can you perhaps also predict when I might be assured of winning the lottery [:D]

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[quote user="AnOther"]Hello mowerman, I see someone's been catching up on their back reading [:D]

[quote user="mowerman"]Your "numpties" are invariably computer newbies

which you were once, the innocent or in most cases the elderly who have

been shown the very basics of using a computer by their family and

until now have lived a life of trusting everyone.

[/quote]Invariably ?

On the contrary, there have been countless cases where ordinary, otherwise seemingly reasonably intelligent and sane people of all ages and levels of online experience, have been sucked into all sorts of completely obvious scams. I think you do the elderly a disservice too by portraying them as naive. I would say that these days they are probably amongst the most cautious and unless specifically mentally feeble are only too well aware that the days of trusting everyone are long since past.

Also, as far as I'm concerned anyone who let's an elderly relative loose on the Internet without adequately warning them of the dangers has to qualify as both a numptie and criminally stupid to boot.

Thank you for predicting my future BTW, can you perhaps also predict when I might be assured of winning the lottery [:D]

[/quote]

Continued shallow thinking by putting words into my mouth. I did not say, suggest or even portray the elderly as 'naive'-your words. I indicated that we are all vulnerable to crime beit internet or in any other form  (except of course you) with some more than others. Sadly your critism of the victims as "numpties" is now compounded further to include the "criminally stupid" !   How easy and arrogant-by the implication that it could never happen to you- to blame the victims in the absence of any constructive comment or ability to address the issue and how it might be resolved.

"...there have been countless cases where ordinary, otherwise seemingly

reasonably intelligent and sane people of all ages and levels of online

experience, have been sucked into all sorts of completely obvious

scams."

I'm out of here but will leave you to read that sentence again and see the contradiction in your own argument.

PS

You'll not win the lottery.

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  • 2 years later...
I have no idea if this has been mentioned on here before, but even if it has it is here yet again..

I have just had a phone call from a very nice sounding Indian female. The number displayed on our phone was 00501.

She

was concerned that we had a virus on our Windows programme and asked me

to go through several things that if I had done so would have given her

remote access to my laptop. She was very knowledgable about my windoze

system and was there to really help me

"Please press this and that" Which of course I didn't.

When

I got tired of the game I told her that I am a retired IBM engineer and

had not done anything that she had asked me to do on my MacBook which

doesn't run windoze anyway and just said good bye!

If you get any call like this the best thing to do is to tell them to go away and put the phone down.

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  • 1 year later...

Earlier this month I received a very spurious e-mail which for all intent and purpose it looked as though it was Orange / France Telecom. That was until I read the contents of the message; it stated that they had made an error and mistakenly debited my bank account twice. 

The message then went on to request my bank details in order to refund the oversight but, I thought it strange to include my pin number; this immediately set the alarm bell’s ringing. I took a look at the sender’s address and realised that this was quite possibly a scam e-mail.

 I replied to this e-mail informing them that I don’t give out my bank details in an e-mail and requested them to reimburse me with a cheque.

This morning I received my bank statement, my account is quite healthy and no double debit, so this was, I believe a scam e-mail.

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Mr Wiggly,

I recently got an email supposedly from a well know British newspaper journalist saying the he had been mugged in the Philippines and needed help. I immediately sent him all my bank account information and loads of money. I hope he gets home OK. Oh, he must have, I saw him on the Andrew Marr show on Sunday. Think I should ask for my money back?

David

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[quote user="Mr Wiggy"]

Earlier this month I received a very spurious e-mail which for all intent and purpose it looked as though it was Orange / France Telecom. That was until I read the contents of the message; it stated that they had made an error and mistakenly debited my bank account twice. 

The message then went on to request my bank details in order to refund the oversight but, I thought it strange to include my pin number; this immediately set the alarm bell’s ringing. I took a look at the sender’s address and realised that this was quite possibly a scam e-mail.

 I replied to this e-mail informing them that I don’t give out my bank details in an e-mail and requested them to reimburse me with a cheque.

This morning I received my bank statement, my account is quite healthy and no double debit, so this was, I believe a scam e-mail.

[/quote]

I don't think that it's a good idea to reply to anything like that as now they know that your e-mail address is active. I would have just deleted it.

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  • 5 years later...

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