We are continuing as a contemporary society to struggle with scams that involve some degree of social engineering. ID Theft is rampant and a continual theme for just about every financial loss that crosses our desk. Fraudsters are constantly attacking our members and, in some circumstances, our very own business enterprises. I wanted to call out a few scams in this article to ensure that we are putting our best fraud prevention foot forward on them. Here are just a few of the socialized scams that are currently circulating throughout the US.

Business Social Networking Websites

This is a pretty serious scam that targets professionals by usually tricking them into connecting with persons who are not who they portray themselves to be. Before you “link up” with an unknown person please take some time to scrutinize whether this individual is working for your current or former employer. Pay particular attention to the industry that they claim to work in and ask your colleagues if they can vouch for an unknown connection if you suspect that they are not legitimate. The goal of many fraudsters is to fictionalize their profiles in order to gain insider information about your email address, phone numbers and employment status which is typically visible as soon you agree to connect profiles. Criminals will often mimic or spoof your phone number in order to gain rarified access to your personal financial accounts so please remember to never post your personal cell or home number on a professional networking website. My mantra is pretty simple:  If we need to meet or have a conversation then I will initiate it using common sense while protecting my personal information.

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