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Episodes by Topic: scams
Are You Smarter Than a Scammer?
Fraudsters come in many varieties. We must be vigilant to protect our assets and potentially the assets of others. Mike is joined by Carl Francois, SVP and Bank Security Act and Fraud Officer for Southern First Bank, to discuss tricks we all need to be aware of.
Scams can come from email, text, social media, and phone calls. Very common scam types recently have been the Romance Scam and Military Scam. Mike and Carl discuss how these scammers work and some things to look out for.
Mike and Carl discuss ways of preventing getting caught in a scam including:
- Ignore and delete unsolicited social media messages, texts, and emails
- Share less on social media!
- Watch out for requests for gift cards, wires, a new PayPal or Venmo account, investing in cryptocurrency
- Watch for phone calls that mimic your phone number
- Don’t send passwords or other confidential information over email
- Look for unusual or misspelled email addresses
The Federal Trade Commission has good resources about scams on their website. The FBI has also set up the Internet Crime Complaint Center (ic3.gov), where you can report internet crimes.
You can also report the scams to your banker or another trusted individual or ask them about the communication before you take any action.
Carl also recently wrote this article for Southern First Bank on the top 3 scams right now.
Final words: Always be discerning!
Listen to the EpisodeListener Questions: Answered
In this episode, Mike answers a variety of listener questions:
- What about helping the homeless veterans or other people out begging on the roadside?
- My mutual fund has some Puerto Rican funds in it. Should I be concerned? Should I trade out of that fund?
- Should I look at transferring some of my employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) into an IRA?
- How does using a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) affect my Adjusted Gross Income (AGI)?
- What are some of the considerations for the Required Minimum Distribution (RMD)?
- What about using a Donor Advised Fund?
- I am just generally concerned about the current state of the stock market, should I sell everything and move to cash only?
Avoiding Scams
Highlights from “Hoodwinked? Me? Never…” I won’t ever get duped by a scam artist! I can spot a scam a mile away! Overconfidence is probably one of the first signs that you are next in line to be scammed. Mike retells the stories of several people that were taken advantage of by scam artists and how you can be better prepared. Gift cards; Social Security; IRS—the list keeps going.
Listen to the EpisodeHoodwinked? Me? Never…
I won’t ever get duped by a scam artist! I can spot a scam a mile away! Overconfidence is probably one of the first signs that you are next in line to be scammed. Mike retells the stories of several people that were taken advantage of by scam artists and how you can be better prepared. Gift cards; Social Security; IRS—the list keeps going.
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