Scams are nothing new. I'm regularly clearing scam emails out of my email folders and ignoring phone calls from unknown numbers.

But I never cease to be amazed at the craftiness of scammers or the extents they'll go to to rob us of our money or personal details. Recently, two friends have shared on social media about separate scam attempts.

In one case, my friend Aubrey received a text message from an unknown number saying:

"Mark is going to try to come to the pregame meal. What time should he be there to help you all unload and bring stuff in?"

 

Admittedly, it seems fairly inconspicuous -- an easy case of wrong number. However, things started to smell fishy when she discovered that several other friends -- including some with different area codes -- received the same text from the same number. I'm not sure what the end-game might be in this case, but better off not replying, as none of them did.

In a second instance, my friend Jon received the following letter at home. It came in a letter labeled “URGENT. RESPONSE REQUIRED. FINAL NOTICE.”

Credit: Jon Meerdink, Facebook
Credit: Jon Meerdink, Facebook
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Turns out, Jon had never heard of them and hadn't bought any products from them. A comment in the thread to follow read:

This type of scam is aimed at people with failing memories or reduced cognitive abilities, such as the elderly. My parents were constantly bombarded with this kind of crap. It's the worst kind of evil.

 

Consider this a friendly reminder to be cautious of any unexpected communication via email, phone call, text message or home mail. Often, scams will ask you for money, personal details or to click on a link or attachment for further details. If you're unsure, play things safe.

This article from The Better Business Bureau June of this year warns against the top scams of 2017 so far including phishing, travel and vacation, online purchase, sweepstakes/lottery/prize and tax collection.

What's your scam story or word of caution?

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