Money Making Scams - Not Just Normal Websites
ABSTRACT.
Scam Artists have been around for centuries. Years have passed and new technology has emerged And so have a new breed of con artist;
A wise man once said "money is the root of all evil" could this be one of the things he was referring to?
THE ONLINE FRAUDSTER.
Utilizing various aspects and tools of the Internet, the online fraudster has become more successful then ever in defrauding a large target audience. So successful, that the issue has been the subject of much concern in recent years. Online fraud is still continuing to thrive. As long as the fraudster is motivated by greed and able to deceive others, fraud will always be in existence. This report will closely examine the emergence of the fraudster into cyberspace. It will discuss what tactics and methods the online fraudster utilizes in his/her attempts to successfully deceive others. Lastly, several conclusions will be drawn regarding Internet fraud.
THE VENTURE INTO CYBERSPACE
Imagine a medium in which information or ideas can be passed on to a large audience of individuals in a relatively short period of time. If you haven't been living under a rock in recent years, you would know that such a thought is in fact reality. The Internet, has now found its way into the commercial and private sectors of Press Release Distribution Service Canada countries around the globe. The number of Netizens increases greatly with the passing of each day. As the population of people on the Internet continually grows, so do the potential threats and vulnerabilities associated with it. The Internet can provide a wealth of information. However, it can also be viewed as a breeding ground for fraud.
Just think, the Internet has made things so much easier for the fraudster. No longer is there a need to rent office space, hire employees and spend countless hours on a telephone pitching to targeted audiences. Time and funding have been reduced significantly. As a result, the Internet looks extremely attractive. Furthermore, with the usefulness, popularity and global reach of the Internet continuously growing, it doesn't take much to try and understand why fraudsters are venturing off into cyberspace.
Fraudsters:
Who Are They? / What is Their Motive? So, who are these online fraudsters?
Fraudsters are individuals "who defraud others". Fraudsters have been around for centuries. "throughout the centuries, people have committed frauds of all sorts in order to gain, through taking advantage of others". Virtual scam-artists are similar to the traditional scam artists in the real world. Their fundamental motive is greed. However, there is one distinct difference; they utilize a completely different medium/environment in their mission to ultimately accomplish their goal of successfully deceiving others. The typical traditional fraudster starts his/her venture off in a similar manner to that of a business entrepreneur. In regards to financing his/her operation, To get up and running a relatively small amount of money is required. As little as one individual to as many as twenty staff can operate a typical operation. Some operations can be small and generally done on one's spare time, while others may involve full time work. No matter how sophisticated the operation may be, each fraudster must rely on his/her ability and motivation to find the weaknesses of their target audiences and exploit them out of greed. During the months of May 2000 through November 2000 an extensive study to help address the issue of fraud committed through the Internet was undertaken. In this study, a thorough and complete data list was compiled, which allowed a general profile of a typical online fraudster to be made. According to the study, the data suggests that individuals who are involved in fraudulent activities via the Internet are generally, individuals and not businesses. Furthermore, these individuals are predominantly males residing in largely populated states. The data also suggests that these individuals have diversified international backgrounds with representation in the United States, Eastern Europe and Canada. In a recent article relating to the emergence of Internet fraud stemming from the recent terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon (fake donation funds,etc.)started to pop up, an official at Britain's National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS) stated "fraudsters typically exploit human misery, so they invariably create human misery. They are without scruples because this is how they make money. It is very grubby money". There is a saying: "another day, another dollar". If there is a dollar to be made, the fraudster will do whatever it takes to make it.
Fraud Exists in Various Corners of Cyberspace The Internet has allowed for people thousands of miles away to communicate with one another in real time. The most dominant forms of communication over the Internet are electronic mail, newsgroups, Usenet, "chat" rooms, Internet relay chats, list serves.
Types of Online Scams Used by Fraudsters:
Bulletin boards also serve as major mediums of communication. Electronic mail is of great use to online fraudsters. In literally a few minutes, an online fraudster can create a personalized email and send it to thousands of individuals in his/her target audience. Using e-mail to accomplish such a task is known as "spamming". The fraudster knows that many people will simply delete the e-mail once it arrives. However, it is also likely that many will be made curious by the subject heading of the e-mail message, and therefore click the message to read on. The people who do open the message, a small percentage just may fall into the fraudster's trap.
BULLETIN BOARDS
have also proven useful to online fraudsters. Bulletin boards are a typically the location where many individuals exchange information with one another. Many online fraudsters utilize message boards. Offering schemes to subscribers/browsers of such boards. Fraudsters, who target securities investors for example, utilize the message boards to pass on bogus "inside" information on certain stocks or corporations. Many fraudsters prefer this medium because it adds the benefit of them being able to easily hide their true identities with the use of aliases. Using multiple aliases, a fraudster can make it seem as though many people share the same opinions or have the same "inside" information that the fraudster does.
Auctions
According to a study released in May 2001. Internet auction fraud makes up a majority (64%) of all online fraud. Internet auction houses have become extremely popular in recent years. An online auction is very similar to a real life auction. The only differences in an online auction are that the auction has a global reach and that there is no need to have an auction house with limited seating. On the Internet, it is quite possible to have multiple bidders and millions of potential bidders for a specific item. It's a great concept; however, there are multiple reasons, why Internet auction fraud is the number one type of online fraud. According to the May 2001 study "Internet auction fraud involves "nondelivery, misrepresentation, triangulation fee stacking, black market goods, multiple bidding and shill bidding". In regards to "non-delivery",this type of fraud involves having an auction on an item that does not exist.
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