Age of the Scammers !

Hordes of people are receiving unsolicited phone calls in which the caller repeatedly asks " Can you hear me ? "   That seems a perfectly reasonable question and if there is voice clarity most people answer " Yes ! "

That is a big mistake because the scammer now has a recording of your actual voiced saying " Yes " and it will be later used in heists involving identity theft to order goods online.  The merchandising companies always record the phone conversations when orders are placed by phone and so do the banks when account changes are made by phone.   It can be difficult to persuade others that you did not order goods when it is clearly your voice agreeing to the purchase on that recorded phone conversation.

There is another penetration of security that is becoming quite common.  Most people have a problem remembering the  multiplicity of passwords that apply to their accounts and electronics - and often settle on a single password.  Beware when a merchant insists on establishing a password for a service where that is entirely unnecessary, because when that is left to your choice it will probably be the one used in banking and other important matters.

Another scam associated with passwords is the quick reference to establish identity when a password is forgotten.  Several key questions come into play.   "  What was you mothers maiden name ? ".  "  What was the name of your first pet ? ".  It is probably wise to steer clear of such questions if they are suggested by a merchant and settle for something more remote - but of your choice.

The scammers have also updated the age old trade of the " scalper " !   How many times have you spent hours on the phone trying to buy tickets to a show you desperately want to go and see - only to fail to gain a connection ?   Then you later find that the scalpers have plenty of tickets - and they are offering them at ever exorbitant prices at the clock clicks closer to show time.

The Australian live performance industry has long called on the government to enact legislation to outlaw " ticket bots " used to buy tickets in bulk and then resell them at vastly inflated prices.  In many cases the computers making the calls were those belonging to private owners which had been infected with viruses and could be brought to life on command to swamp a ticket office phone lines and make it impossible for the public to get a connection.

There were usually limits on the number of tickets offered to each customer, but the sheer size of this " bot army " ,each buying at the numbers limit greatly reduced the seating available to genuine retail customers.  The scalpers are making huge profits.

Ticketmaster reports that it blocked five billion bot attempts in 2015 but that the attacks increased by a ratio of ten percent year on year.   As fast as one remedy is put in place and delivers a measure of success the scammers change tactics and bring the ingenuity of electronics into play to overcome the obstacles.

Nomatter what science thinks up to deliver a range of benefits, you can be certain that the other side of humanity will be equally quick to turn it to criminal advantage.   Such is the ingenuity of the human mind !