Find Out What Makes the Perfect Scam Take on Today

What Makes the Perfect Scam

Find out how scams and scammers are evolving and how you can stay safe

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Bob Edwards: With the holidays behind us, now's a good time to focus on our mental health and self care. On Thursday, January 28th, AARP will host a teletown hall featuring NPR's Joanne Allen, host of the Been There, Done That Podcast, and mental health expert, Dr. Andrea Bonier. They'll discuss positive self-care activities you can do this winter, from staying connected online, to finding a new podcast to listen to. Be sure to tune in on January 28th, at 7 PM Eastern Time, by dialing in at 855-274-9507, or visiting aarp.org/coronavirus. Bob Edwards: We learned last year that even a pandemic isn't enough to stop scammers from going after your money and your identity. But this year, fraudsters are looking for new opportunities to cash in. Today, we'll discuss the top fraud and scam trends that are coming in 2021, with Bob Sullivan, fraud journalist, author, and now, new host of the AARP podcast, The Perfect Scam. That's coming up next. Bob Edwards: Hi, I'm Bob Edwards with an AARP Take On Today. Bob Edwards: The Perfect Scam, if you haven't heard it, tells the stories of people who have been the victims of fraud. You hear firsthand accounts from those who have experienced scams, leading fraud experts, and professional con artists who pulled back the curtains on how fraudsters operate. Our guest today, Bob Sullivan, is The Perfect Scam's new host. If his voice sounds familiar, it might be because he's been on Take On Today before, back on episode 80, he discussed how to avoid being fooled by fine print. Bob, thanks for joining us again. Bob Sullivan: Happy to be here. Bob Edwards: Tell us about your career in covering consumer and fraud-related news. Bob Sullivan: Well, I'm pretty lucky. I got in on the internet news business at a pretty young age. I was an intern at Microsoft on the launch of Windows 95. The more I repeat that, the older I sound, I know, but I helped set up msnbc.com, at the time. I had a couple of years of ink in my blood from working at local newspapers at that point, but I actually was hired as a technologist. So I was a programmer for them. And then, I naturally split my time between writing about technology and doing technology, and eventually tilted towards just writing about the dark side of technology, full-time, so computer hacking, viruses, privacy, and scams. Bob Sullivan: You know, the Internet's the greatest tool ever invented, if you're a criminal, a con-artist, an international scammer. It provides all the perfect tools for that. So this podcast, The Perfect Scam, I feel like I've been working towards it for a good 20 years. It's a great vehicle for explaining to people, not just what these scams are. I mean, in the end, we all know we shouldn't be wiring money to strangers, right? But when the cover stories come to you, and when you see victims at their most vulnerable points, you understand why these things happen, and really why anybody could fall for any of these crimes. Bob Edwards: So that's what drew you to The Perfect Scam? Bob Sullivan: Yeah. The stories are remarkable. The resources are fantastic. I've known about AARP's database of criminals, and about the Fraud Watch Network helpline for a long time, thousands and thousands of people call in every year. And your listeners can call in. The number's (877) 908-3360. It is the best resource I know of, of victim stories. And it's the stories that matter. Again, when you put flesh and bones on these people and what happens to them, they're remarkable to listen to. And it's really important for people to speak out when these things happen to them. Bob Edwards: We have a clip of one of The Perfect Scam's latest episodes, called the Irish Heiress. So let's hear that. Jonathan Walton: I get into her apartment, she's in the corner, convulsing, crying, shaking. I'm like, "What happened? Are you okay?" And I'm hugging her. Bob Sullivan: Mair says her family has cut her off, managed to freeze all her bank accounts, and she doesn't have access to any of her money. Her Irish family is trying to intimidate her, get her to give up her inheritance. Jonathan Walton: I felt horrible. Like, the family, they're winning this round. I'm not going to let that happen. So I start loaning her more money until she can get her inheritance. So I loaned her almost 6,000 to pay rent. Bob Edwards: Tell us a bit about that episode. Why did you decide to cover it? Bob Sullivan: That's Jonathan Walton. And he was a reality TV show producer who met a woman, who was very charismatic, and dramatic, and slowly but surely, over the course of months, and some ways, years, led him down this road of convincing him that she was entitled to this big inheritance as an Irish heiress. And like so many of these crimes, it began with a wining and dining, and first, she gave him money, and slowly gained his trust. Bob Sullivan: And the remarkable part of his story, however, is when the gig was up. When he finally figured out that she was lying to him, after taking him for about $100,000. He then used his reality TV producer skills to hunt down more and more information about her, found other victims, and ultimately led to her being convicted of crimes, and doing hard time in jail, and helping save other people who were in the middle of being her victims. So it's a dark story with a happy ending, which some of the stories you'll hear in The Perfect Scam will have that. Bob Edwards: Last year, we heard a lot of scams related to coronavirus. What types of scams do you predict will come up in 2021? Bob Sullivan: I think this is really important. Scammers always follow the news, so the virus will dominate the scam landscape, but what I would expect in the early part of this year, you'll see more scams related to vaccine distribution. "Give us your name or your credit card, or personal information, and we'll help you find the vaccine, or get a jump ahead online for the vaccine" or whatnot. Anytime there's that much interest in a scarcity, that's an opportunity for criminals. Bob Sullivan: Another story that we're covering, you'll hear it soon, is about pet scams. The coronavirus and isolation, and some of the stay-at-home orders have convinced people that it's a great time to get a new pet. And as a result, this is a good thing, there are shortages at adoption shelters, and even at some breeders and catteries. And as a result, people are going farther and farther to find pets, and that creates another opportunity for scams. Pet scams are up about 600 fold from three years ago. So those are things to look out for in 2021. Bob Edwards: Have you seen anything already about vaccines or pet scams that make you suspicious? Bob Sullivan: All sorts of things. I think the big thing about pet scams is the new money systems that are being used. We're all familiar with Western Union, and even gift cards that have been used for a long time as a mechanism for criminals to get money from victims in a way that's untraceable and unrecoverable. That's why you should always use credit cards, because you can dispute charges with your credit card, but now there's Zelle, and these other point-to-point, person-to-person payment systems, and criminals have really alighted on those. Bob Sullivan: So with a lot of these scams, there's a big elaborate cover story. There might be a puppy whose picture you've fallen in love with, but in the end, when someone asks you to send them money today, right away, using a method that's unrecoverable, that's a really bad sign. That's a red flag. Bob Edwards: What should people do if they encounter these kinds of scams? What resources are available? Bob Sullivan: Well, AARP has this Fraud Watch Network helpline. So that's a great resource to begin with. Again, the number there is (877) 908-3360, but I really like to tell people, "Stop, drop, and roll." Stop, drop, and roll, like you heard when you were a kid, if you are catching on fire, well, stop typing on the keyboard, drop the phone, and just roll your chair back from your desk. And the biggest enemy for a criminal is people who take their time with things. There's always tomorrow. You can always pause, call a friend, hang up the phone. So whenever you have any of that queasy feeling inside, like something isn't quite right, listen to it and stop, drop, and roll. Bob Edwards: Anything else you'd like to add, Bob? Bob Sullivan: The most important thing is that, if you think you or someone you love is a victim for a scam, don't blame yourself or blame anyone else. Don't feel shame. They know what they're doing. They know how to find people at their most vulnerable. And the best thing that you can do is talk about it, shine some sunlight on it, go to authorities, call AARP, and get the criminals what they deserve. Be kind to them, give them the space to come out and tell you what happened. And then talk about it with me, or with law enforcement, because it's that kind of sunlight that is going to actually get us to the right place, and get the criminals in jail. Bob Edwards: If you get a suspicious call, text, or email, or if you, a relative, or a friend has given m oney or financial information to someone you now suspect was a scammer, call the Fraud Watch Network at (877) 908-3360. Thanks to our news team. Producers , Colby Nelson and Danny Alarcon. Engineer, Julio Gonzalez. Executive producer, Jason Young. My cohost, Wilma Consul and Mike Ellison, and a special thanks to Outgoing Production Assistant Brigid Lowney. She's been a great help for the past year. We can't wait to see what she does next. Become a subscriber on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, or other apps. Be sure to rate our show as well, for an AARP Take On Today, I'm Bob Edwards. Thanks for listening. We learned last year that even a pandemic isn't enough to stop scammers from going after your money and identity. This week, Bob Sullivan, the new host of AARP's ‘The Perfect Scam’ podcast, discusses how scams are evolving in the new year. For more information: Subscribe:

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