Scammer Series: What to Never Tell a Scammer

This dude appears on Facebook owned social media. His photos range from when he was very young to younger. He most be up to 50 but rarely shows that since the idea is to impress older guys with a loving younger dude that wants marriage. He will bring that right away. He told me he was in the secret service of the Army. But from time to time he will make up something. He has been seen many times with different names and different pictures so I believe his pictures are his, not stolen, at least the ones Ive seen.

This is Adam Gonzalez for adamfoxie.blogspot.com

This guy tried it with me until he told me he was at a place in Kandahar when there were no troops there. There were some out but not in Kandahar. When I told him he close the conversation which I continue to tell him what a dirty guy he was but really they know they are dirty and have no conscience, so the best way is to get heir picture and re publish as a scammer and don’t address them anymore. My own opinion contrary to some, is to warn others. 

By 

Charlotte Vogel

What should you never say to a scammer?

I know that it makes you feel better to tell off a scammer but at the end of the day, it doesn't bother them. Understand that these people are thieves. They are preying on vulnerable people - typically the elderly, students, and immigrants - who they feel they can bully. They often use threatening language to scare taxpayers into giving up information or money: in one such instance, an older victim was so distraught as a result of threats from the scammer, that he crashed his car on the way to pick up a wire. These are not nice people. Your threats, bad language, telling them off? They've likely heard and said worse. You're not fazing them one bit. Don't waste your time.

Rather than engage with the scammer which may result in you giving out sensitive information about yourself, Just hang up. You can also contact fintrack.org (OR support@fintrack.org) to report the scam and have a shot at getting a refund on your stolen funds. They only get 10% of the recovered funds at the end of a successful recovery process so you must have gotten your refund first before undergoing any payment.

I think you should never engage with scammers because when you do, you've just confirmed two pieces of information for the scammers: they've called a working phone number and you'll answer the phone. Remember that identity theft isn't just about getting money out of you one time or stealing a tax refund check, it's an entire industry. Your data typically isn't getting stolen in one fell swoop: your identity profile is being put together piece by piece. Key bits of information about you may be stored, repackaged and sold from one scammer to the next. The fact that you answered the phone and were willing to engage? That's valuable to scammers who might try it again later - or sell your number to the highest bidder.

When you tell scammers to stop calling you, you may inadvertently give out more information about your phone number. When you offer comments like "stop calling my house" or "don't call me at work" or "this is my cell phone," you've just added to the database. Not only do the scammers know that it's a good number, and you'll answer, you've now offered up more details about the number the scammer just called (i.e. it's your house, workplace or cell number). If they're simply calling off of a stolen call list, you've just made your phone number more valuable.

When you tell scammers that you know you don't owe anything, you might have confirmed your name, that you're a taxpayer, and worse, possibly your Social Security Number (SSN). Remember, this isn't some kid calling with a script: these are professional thieves who likely do this for a living. They know how to get what they want. It can be easy to give out or confirm additional information even if you don't intend to. For example, if a scammer says, "Our records indicate that Charlotte Vogel with SSN 123-45-6789 owes $5,400," and I reply "That's not true, I always pay my taxes," I might have inadvertently offered up more information. Not only does the scammer now know that my phone number is good, they have a name to attach to it. And since I automatically didn't say, "That's not my Social Security Number," that may be an indication that they have the right SSN, too. So now they might have the name and SSN of a taxpayer who claims to be current: that strongly suggests that I have a job or other taxable income and that I have enough in assets to pay my bills regularly. I just became an even more valuable commodity to the scammer.

When you make threats back, you might be offering valuable "out of wallet" information. It may be tempting to bring out the big guns like "I'll get you, I'm a lawyer" or "How dare you, my dad is a cop" or "Just wait until my Army husband, Bill, gets home." But think about what you've just said. Yes, more information about yourself. Those additional nuggets are helping form your profile. Pieces of data are matched to other data. Suddenly, you’re no longer just a random phone number. You’re Jane Smith, SSN 123-45-6789. You're a lawyer, and your dad is a cop. You live at 123 Elm Street, Anytown, USA 12345 (since that address matches your phone number). Your spouse’s name is Bill, and he works for the government. That data – especially once it’s been matched with more data which can be found in other places, such as social media sites or from a recent hack – is incredibly valuable.

Don’t fall for their tricks. Keep your personal information safe by remaining alert.