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I think the main thing holding people back is embarrassment. We helped a neighbour a while back who had lost a lot of money by giving his account details to his supposed bank 'for verification'. He was utterly mortified that he had been duped and once we had an inkling of what was going on we had to drag the information out of him. How do we get out of this way of thinking that scams are to be ashamed of? We're all human and they catch you when you're at your most vulnerable.
My brother too, who considers himself the worldliest of people, was taken advantage of. This was at an ATM and he was distracted by the lady behind him and next thing he knew his card had disappeared (so had she!) and by the time he got to the bank down the road, a chunk of money had been withdrawn. It's the oldest trick - they all are - but surely human nature is to be trusting? How do you protect yourself without becoming a horribly sceptical shrew?
£5 billion is the estimated amount lost each year by UK consumers to mass-market scams. Nearly half of all people in the UK (48%) have been targeted by a scam, yet just 5% of scams are reported. A new Age UK survey has found that 53% of older people (aged 65+) believe they've been targeted by fraudsters, and that while many do not respond, of those who do 70% of people of all age groups said that they had personally lost money. The research suggests that a third of older people who responded to a scam may have lost £1,000 or more.
www.ageuk.org.uk/latest-news/over-half-of-people-aged-65-targeted-by-fraudsters/
There are lots of reasons why people may not report scams, and embarrassment is one of them, but 3 million people fall victim to scams every year! Hopefully, the scale of scams should help people not feel as embarrassed. Also, scammers deliberately pressure people to make a fast decision and people as a result are less discerning than they would otherwise be. Many people instantly regret their decisions but it pays to be suspicious of people putting you under pressure to make a decision.
There are so many scams that it pays to be firm, but not impolite. Scammers play on people's decency and unwillingness to hang up or close the door on people. And there's nothing wrong with being sceptical - especially before signing anything or handing over money or personal details. A legitimate company won't mind you checking their credentials before you deal with them.
If we were all prepared to share our experience of scams, and look out for others in our communities then we may be able to prevent others from falling for a scam and ultimately catch the scammers. If we refused to be rushed by scammers into making a decision, or refused to be hushed into silence by a sense of shame, we could create a community of informed, confident consumers alert to the dangers and assertive with 'out of the blue' contacts. This is what Scam Awareness Month 2015 is all about.