Yes. People get scammed for millions this way.
A newer scam does an end-around the normal sniff tests. They don’t ask you to give htem money, they strike up a pretty genuine friendship, they have details that check out, so it feels like you’ve just made an actual friend. They’ll talk to you for months. And then they’ll mention that they’ve been making a lot of money on this cool new investment. Well you want to make a lot of money on an investment too, so you ask how, and they tell you how to download an app from the app store, which is supposed to be a safe place, and walk you through “investing” money in some crypto or whatever. Which of course is the payout.
Spezi@feddit.org 2 weeks ago
Yes, its mostly older people that are alone that fall for this type of scam.
My sister-in-law works for a bank and she had a 70yo customer that sent multiple thousands of euros to a guy she has never met. They told her its a scam, but she insisted to send the money anyways. Her family had to watch her sending away all of her life savings.
0x0@programming.dev 2 weeks ago
I’d wager that’s not the most represented demographic in the fediverse… and neckbeards tend to know better.
Spezi@feddit.org 2 weeks ago
Even if its only 1 in 1000 that bites, its worth it for them. Average wage in many of the countries these scammers come from is probably like 50-200 euros, so getting someone to transfer you their savings can give you enough money to live from for years. Obviously, most of that money goes to the person operating the scam.
0x0@programming.dev 2 weeks ago
And the scammers themselves are often forced labor.
Slovene@feddit.nl 2 weeks ago
No I’m doesn’t! 😟