With the world being so heavily reliant on the internet now, it’s no surprise that cybercriminals are infiltrating a variety of financial industries, including the investment industry. Cybercriminals can use a variety of tactics to make their investment scams appear legitimate. Below, we’ve highlighted some ways that cybercriminals may try and scam you for ‘investment opportunities’ so you can learn how to avoid investment scams.
Impersonation
They may create fake websites designed off real ones as a template to look as legitimate as possible. By mimicking real companies with their fake websites and emails, they appear real and look as though they are legit. This is done to trick people into trusting them and using them as an investment company.
Phishing
This is where criminals send emails or texts to numerous accounts from seemingly legitimate accounts and companies. From this, they encourage them to click on a link or enter some personal information. This is usually done as a disguise acting as a necessary step that has been requested by a legitimate company, when in fact it is a façade used to gather your information that they can use to take your money or commit other crimes.
Spoofing
Criminals may go as far as making fake websites. These are usually accompanied by fake contact numbers to appear even more legitimate. People often fall for the mistake that a website and a phone number mean that a company is real and that no one would go as far as that when in fact, they will!
Misleading information
When learning how to protect yourself from investment scams, remember that scammers may use fake news articles, testimonials and other forms of false information to further the idea that their scams are legitimate. This spread of fake information is supposed to reassure people that this company is real when in fact it’s not.
Pressure tactics
Criminals may also use high-pressure sales tactics. This is a way to scare people into making a decision quickly. They make it seem like if you pause to think about it you will miss the opportunity and that it’s not an opportunity you want to miss, just so you don’t have time to question their legitimacy.
It’s important to always be cautious when considering possible investment opportunities and to learn how to spot investment scams. This can be made even easier with financial advice from a legitimate company such as Integritas Financial Planners Ltd.
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