Social Engineering: Business Venture Scams

Example of a recent person who approached me on LinkedIn with a business deal.

No, this was nothing I would gain from. Unfortunately there are quite a few people in this day and age whereby they speak of elusive dreams and unfettered expectations whereby one might make an extraordinary amount of income in a short time.

Tactics of these thieves are often:

1- Wear a suit.

2- Act like they have lots of money or know people who do – from whatever scheme they are talking someone into.

3- Want to talk with you for a long time. Why? To convince you of their reality. If they only have a short time to explain it is harder for them to lose you in their vision, whereby the reality of their plan is more difficult to discern.

This means they will often RUN if you force a short explanation as seen in the screenshot I demonstrate below.

4- May try to do you a “favor.” This common tactic is useful for example, perhaps buying your small coffee at Starbucks. This will suggest they trust you and have faith in your receptive nature to the idea. It is an attempt to coerce another into a state of complacency.

5- Meet in a public yet non-official place. I.e. Starbucks, a cafe, etc. rather than some place of business.

Just yesterday I overheard someone talking to a woman and performing EXACTLY as described above. He mentioned she could make a million dollars, that she was capable of selling product, that his friend had millions, he was in a suit, and he wanted her to sign up for a service which would cost her money.

Yep. $$$$$.

That is the goal.