4 Tricky Scams To Watch Out For

Scammers aren’t handing out treats this year… only tricks. Don’t get caught up in the new-age digital deception. From AI-generated voices to fake toll service texts, scams are getting bolder and more dangerous. Familiarize yourself with these tricky scams and what to watch out for to protect your wallet.

1. AI-Powered Scams

AI can be a useful tool. Unfortunately, it is also a useful “tool” for scammers as well. With today’s technology, fraudsters can use AI to:

  • Generate more convincing phishing emails. In the past, we have been able to spot these false messages because they had choppy sentence structures and frequent typos… and just felt suspicious. AI text is designed to feel natural and can be tweaked to be more persuasive.
  • Fake and clone voices. For phone-based scams, fraudsters can use AI to generate or alter a voice to mimic accents and voices you may know. During the call, they will try to convince you to transfer money or expose your account details. Or, they may capture your own voice and use it to unlock your data in other ways.
  • Create phony images or deepfake videos. AI-generated images and videos can be used to promote fake products, fake documents, and more. Images and videos used to be an almost sure-fire way to spot a scam. Now, this type of evidence can be tampered with.

AI technology has opened the doors for businesses and individuals to create content for everyday tasks… but also for scammers. With realistic images, videos, and voices at their disposal, many different types of scams are out there.

2. Toll Road Text Scams

Don’t get stopped by highway robbery! Recently, there have been scammers sending texts that claim to be related to unpaid tolls. Like any fast-paced scheme, they create a sense of urgency and demand that you use the included link to pay a delinquent toll fee. Often, these fees are very small, and people will just pay them out of fear, thinking they will receive an expensive ticket if they do not follow the instructions.

Many are falling for this scam and losing out on more than just a small fee. If someone clicks on the link in the text and submits their card information to “pay the fee,” more money is taken.

3. Investment Scams

Investment scammers usually impersonate someone you trust or someone you value, like a celebrity, to lure victims to sending them money for a “project.” The promise of high returns seems too good to pass up. Unfortunately, these scams prey on people who are vulnerable and need a “Hail Mary” to get them out of a desperate financial situation.

4. Employment Scams

Did you find a job listing that is too good to be true? Verify the listing before you apply. With the lure of remote work options, scammers have found a way to collect your personal information with employment scams. Sometimes, a job listing is so well faked that you go through an interview process and get the job! After you fill out the typical hiring information, including your Social Security number and bank account for direct deposit, you will find your information compromised later. Lately, these have been coming through via text as “Indeed” posting or work from home/secret shopping contract jobs.

Stay in the know about these types of scams so you can be skeptical if something seems unbelievable or it’s doesn’t give you time to think. Staying informed is your best defense against scams like these.