8 well-known tricks of street fraud manipulators

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Pickpockets and beggars are the most common professions in the field of street fraud. Great schemers with phenomenal psychological instincts have invented many far more sophisticated methods of ripping out the wallets of citizens.

1. Please give me a phone number. We urgently need to call

A man comes up to you and asks you to give him a phone number for one call. His phone suddenly ran out of battery. Why not help the poor fellow?

Fraudulent scheme

A fraudster makes a call from someone else's phone, the cost of which is several times higher than the contents of your wallet. The fraudster made sure that the funds were credited to his account.

How to avoid

Never share your phone with strangers, even if you feel ashamed about it.

2. We will exchange currency at a favorable rate

This technique was especially common in the 90s. The person offers you to exchange currency at a rate that is much more favorable than at a bank. You agree, transfer money to each other and, after carefully counting them, happily make sure that the transaction is correct.

Fraudulent scheme

Your joy will last until you discover that the bills received are fakes, the price of which is no more than a sheet of paper.

How to avoid

Never change money from your hands!

3. This is a gift for you! Now please make a donation …

A joyful person comes up to you and holds out an object. “Take it, take it! It's free! A gift from …”- he assures. You pick up a trinket out of sympathy for a stranger. The person is pleasant, smiles, says good things. You thank him from the bottom of your heart …

Fraudulent scheme

Suddenly, in the same polite tone, he invites you to make some kind of donation. You immediately feel that it is impossible to refuse: you cannot ignore the request of such a kind person who gave you a gift for no reason.

And even though you realize that this is all a deception, the fear of social disapproval forces you to make a donation. However, its size will turn out to be, according to the stranger, unseemly small for an honest person. The manipulator seems to hypnotize you - and you again reach for your wallet.

How to avoid

Such scammers are great psychologists. They quickly define your character and put pressure on weak points like conscience and guilt. Starting a conversation with them in most cases will be a losing one.

If the dialogue has begun and you guess what the purpose of the interlocutor is, return the gift to him with the words "This is too generous of you, I cannot accept it." This will make it psychologically easier for you to refuse.

4. I urgently need money, only you can help …

A stranger urgently needs money, and therefore he is ready to immediately sell you, for example, his car at a ridiculous price. And he has a registration certificate, and photos are available, and he is even ready to issue a receipt.

Fraudulent scheme

It's hard to believe it, but many people really agree: they sign some kind of paper, pick up a stranger's phone and say goodbye to a round sum of money. The secret of such adventures lies in the highest manipulative art of a swindler. He arranges the conversation in such a way as to awaken in you a false sense of shame, guilt, fear.

How to avoid

The best thing is to not even start a conversation with someone “only you can help”. Feel free to ignore and pass by the people who address you. You don't have to bother with their problems. Remember, politeness is your biggest enemy.

5. Try your luck

A stranger invites you to play the lottery. You win TV. The prize is right in front of you in the box - you can pick it up. What a luck!

Fraudulent scheme

But first you need to pay a commission or some kind of fee. The law is binding. You agree, the swindler disappears, and there is garbage in the box.

How to avoid

Don't play the lottery! Even legal ones. Fortune does not favor those who seek it.

6. The wallet is lost

The classic trick of scammers. You accidentally find a wallet filled with money on the street. However, along with you, a guy noticed him, who quickly offers to split the "prize" in half, takes half the money and runs away. A moment later, a policeman comes up to you with the owner of the wallet …

Fraudulent scheme

This whole scene is played out in order to put you in an extremely uncomfortable position: you found your wallet, but there is not enough money in it. The representative of the law presses on you with authority and legal threats, and you, desperate to prove your innocence, pay the swindlers out of your pocket.

How to avoid

Do not pick up other people's wallets! Even with good intentions. If, nevertheless, you did it, then refuse to divide the money, declaring the need to take the thing to the police. And when the policeman appears, the first thing to do is ask him to show you his ID.

7. You broke my thing

You are walking calmly down the street (or driving by car), and suddenly a person flies out from around the corner of the house. You hit him, he falls, and then angrily hands you the broken phone.

Fraudulent scheme

It's no secret that the person was at the right time and in the right place. The fraudster's phone was broken before meeting you, but you don't know this and feel genuine guilt. The victim's furious tone forces you to correct the mistake on the spot. Financially, of course.

How to avoid

Sparingly ask for forgiveness and continue the journey as if nothing had happened. If a scammer is following you, advise him to write a statement. Let the police figure out who is to blame.

8. Oh, and you have a speck here

An outwardly pleasant person comes up to you and, under some pretext, enters into tactile contact. Maybe you have a stain on your shirt and he takes you by the hand, or maybe he mistook you for his friend and hugged you in greeting. It takes you a couple of seconds to recover from surprise. A couple more - to explain things to a stranger.

Fraudulent scheme

However, this time will be enough for a fraudster to examine the contents of all your pockets. In essence, this is a pickpocket, but of a higher level, because in his craft he uses a manipulative technique.

How to avoid

You need to quickly respond to the tactile approach of the dodger - grab the hand or push him away. The main thing is not to be shy!

In the arsenal of fraudsters, there are still many different ways of illicit enrichment. Telephone manipulation is common. The older generation still rejoices in gift certificates in their inboxes. Often cheaters call apartments, start a conversation with the owners and, under some pretext, extort money from them.

In this article, Lifehacker looked at examples of street fraud - the most common cases, reflecting the reason for the success of fraudsters.

Breaking the pattern of social behavior, playing on feelings, pressure on the conscience - these are the techniques that make ordinary people do what they will remember with tears in their eyes.

Our politeness, fear of doing or saying something wrong turn out to be the keys of manipulators from the lock of almost any soul. Therefore, on the street, surrounded by thousands of strangers, you should push the concern for compliance with ethical rules to the background, and prioritize your safety.