Advice Direct Scotland, which runs the national consumeradvice.scot service, has launched a new campaign highlighting tactics scammers use to exploit situations of isolation or alienation from their targets.
Criminals regularly use a form of “phishing”, which is luring someone into a relationship by creating a fictional persona or fake online identity.
The charity has warned people not to reveal too many personal details early in an online conversation and stressed that their banking details should never be revealed.
Read more: The Strictly Come Dancing team has been spotted at a Glasgow restaurant ahead of the shows
“With all of us spending more time online, it’s more important than ever to be aware of the tactics used by scammers who exploit isolation and loneliness for personal gain,” said Lindsay McPhee, project lead at consumeradvice.scot.
Criminals are constantly looking for ways to take advantage of people, using romantic feelings to abuse their trust and trick them into giving up their money or personal information.
Using “nudge” tactics can have an emotional and financial impact on people.
We also know that scammers are trying to take advantage of Scottish consumers, affected by the cost of living crisis, with cryptocurrency and fake investment offers.
“Throughout the campaign, we encourage people to avoid getting scammed by ‘catfish’ and other online scammers.
“It is important to remember that there is no shame in being scammed, and consumers who are worried or need help can contact one of our dedicated advisors for free, honest and practical advice.”
DISCLAIMER:- Denial of responsibility! globalwhiskeysuppliers.com is an automatic aggregator around the global media. All the content are available free on Internet. We have just arranged it in one platform for educational purpose only. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, all materials to their authors. If you are the owner of the content and do not want us to publish your materials on our website, please contact us by email at loginhelponline@gmail.com The content will be deleted within 24 hours.