Along with the increased use of the Internet, numerous people became victims of online money scams. Naturally, online everything is much easier, so there is no wonder that these scams made so many victims. Below you can find a top 3 of the most frequent money scams made online.

1. The Nigerian scam

Many people in the United States, but not only, became victims of the Nigerian scam. Actually, people from all over the world received an email from a member of a Nigerian family with wealth. The email actually was a desperate cry for help. The receiver had to get a large sum of money out of the country, as the text of the email said.

The receiver was to be paid with impressive sums of money for small tasks, as the wealthy Nigerian family was in desperate need for help. They actually promised a small fortune. In fact, the victims turned out paying a lot of money in fees, but also in transfers needed for the promised money to be sent.

Even though the entire story was hard to believe and the sums of money were amazingly high, many people fall for the scam. And the scam is not even new. In fact, the whole idea dates back to the 1920s.

The text of the email can look like this:

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2. Lottery scams

Many people dream of winning an impressive sum of money overnight. Well, winning at the lottery unfortunately remains just a dream. Chances are that you already received an email notifying you that you are the winner of a fabulous sum of money.

Most emails of this type look the same. They all congratulate you a lot. The text is simple informing you that you won millions due to your participation in a type of contest. However, there is a catch. To be able to collect the money you will have to pay the processing fee, which will naturally consist in several thousands of dollars.

Even though they did not participate at any contest, many people fall for this money scam. They pay the money and naturally they win nothing.

Here is an example:

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3. Employments search overpayment scam

Having under consideration that the financial crisis has affected millions of people from all over the world, the unemployment figures reached concerning levels. People searching for a job for months became desperate about finding a work place. Many of them posted their resumes on numerous employments sites.

Some received a job offer to become a financial representative, but this is not the only title used in scams. The offer was great, as the company was a foreign one and had problems handling local costumers. The new employee should have handled all those clients.

However, to get this perfect job, the new employee needed to provide the company his personal data, including bank account information. Naturally, it is all a scam and the thief will easily be in the possession of your personal data. Instead of getting a job, you become a victim of identity theft, you have money stolen from your account or you can receive fake credits after depositing money into the scammer’s account.

Another text of an email money scam can look like the one below:

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Naturally, there are numerous other Internet or email scams that have made numerous victims throughout the whole world. Never give your personal information to sources you cannot be sure you can trust and never deposit money into other accounts with the promise that you will make a fortune. 

Celebrities are common money scams victims. They have a lot of money and they surely seem to be easy to full. There also are many celebrities out there who are horrible in dealing with money and handling finances and they surely seem to trust the wrong people in offering them assistance. Throughout the years an impressive number of famous people have become victims of money scams.

Here are the most famous such cases.

Uma Thurman should definitely be mentioned on this list. The famous actress was scammed for no less than $1 million by her financial adviser. Kenneth Starr was hired by the actress herself to take care of her finances, and he surely did so. After being exposed, it has actually been found that Starr took more than $33 million from his famous clients. He loved to work with famous people and he wanted their lifestyle, but their money, too. The list of famous clients that Starr worked with, and has stolen from, includes also Martin Scorsese, Al Pacino and Neil Simon. Uma was the one to expose the thief.

 
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Ben Stiller has also been a victim. The actor was scammed by his financial adviser, as well, men who stoled around $250.000 from his famous client. In total, the man took no less than $10 million from all his clients. Stiller received the money back after the financial adviser was convicted. However, not all clients have been that lucky. Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and David Blaine are other famous people to be scammed in the same case.

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Robert DeNiro became the victim of an art scam. The famous actor was scammed by art gallery owner Lawrence Salander, who had stolen art pieces of more than $88 million. It was claimed that he also stoled paintings from the Hollywood star, which belonged to DeNiro’s father. The case became a huge scandal. Another victim of the same man was tennis star John McEnroe.

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Elton John decided to sue his accounting firm and also his business manager, claiming that they stoled from him more than $39 million. The famous singer claimed to have been the victim of a scam, but unfortunately for the star lost the case after a trial.

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Sting was also scammed by his financial adviser. The star accused the man of stealing from him, even though the two had been working together for more than 15 years. The financial adviser took from Sting the sum of $9.8 million. He managed to steal such an impressive sum of money, as initially Sting didn’t notice that he was a money scam victim.

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Even though celebrities have absolutely glamorous lives, impressive wealth, fabulous homes and the most luxurious cars possible, they can easily be fooled, becoming the victims of money scams. The cases aforementioned may be the most famous ones, but they are just a few from the numerous famous victims of money scams. Most commonly, celebrities do not even notice that someone is stealing money from them.

Money scams have been more and more frequent in the past few years, as with the advancement of technology, the ones pulling these scams have developed new styles and tricks. Therefore, you have to be a lot more careful, so that you will not fall in the traps these people set out for you. The fact is that there are many scams which have evolved on the basis of real activities, while others are more than obvious in their falseness. Even so, there are a lot of people who still fall in the traps set out and who become the victims of scams for money. 

In order to avoid these types of situations, there are some simple tips to keep in mind. These will help you stay clear of trouble and will allow you to understand that there are small signs through which you can detect a scam without even becoming involved in it. One of the easiest scamming methods of the past few years has been the one related to banking services, as these are also the ones through which individuals with negative intentions could gain access to more money. For example, people received an email from a bank, from which they got their paychecks on a card, through which they were asked to give out the details and the personal information of the account and of the account owner, in order to be given a prize. As a result of the situation, many banks have issued statements and letters to their customers saying that this is not the way in which they operate and that they should not trust those emails.

Therefore, one of the most valuable tips in the case of avoiding money scams is to never give out your personal information, about you and about your accounts, through email or through telephone. Another great tip to avoid such a happening is to stay clear of online pop-ups and emails, which announce you won a great amount of cash. This situation is usually a scam or a virus. You can avoid money scams easily by recognizing the lack of professionalism in the announcing ads or by analyzing your online past actions to see if you have entered any contests or competitions. In all cases, you should make sure that you personal and financial information is not provided to an unknown third party.

Since the apparition of the mobile phone contests, in which you have to send out a text message with a specific word or you have to call a number to give a password, the world has gone mad with money scams. Naturally, the initiation of these types of contests was real and was highly popular, due to the fact that it brought a lot of recognitions for the brand creating it and a lot of interest from the masses participating in it. However, on the side, there have been many variations of these contests, in which scams were actually planned and the participant found that, instead of winning, losing money was at hand. The main problem was that people were that much caught in the possibility of winning extra cash, that they did not stand to analyze the matter properly.

The best way through which you can identify the scams is through reading the text message you have received with utmost attention. There are some details which may help you pinpoint the scam and which will send you to the immediate action that you have to take. First of all, if you have not entered any competitions or contests, you should know that it is impossible for you to win something for which you have not given you personal data and your consent. Therefore, if you receive a text in which you are announced that you won a contest you have never heard about, it is best to ignore it. Other features that may help you with pinpointing the scam come from the fact that the brands have personalized numbers, which appear as such on your phone with the text. Therefore, you should not get this type of news from a normal phone number.

The actual completion of the money scams comes from the fact that people are asked to give out their personal data to the sender of the text message. These data can enable the sender to break into your bank accounts easily. If you have pinpointed a type of scam made on mobile phones through the help of text messages, you should announce the local authorities immediately. There are many money scams carried out in the world and more and more of them manage to catch innocent people into their mirage, thinking that they will become rich if they give their personal information to an unknown unit.

As most people did, you surely received at least once an email in which you are announced you are the inheritor of a huge fortune. And in the email you were requested to offer details about your bank account and also personal information. These are spam emails and they are used by cons in order to do money scams. You should never offer personal information about you or about your account to anyone who requests these through email. Many scamers use this trick, of telling people a false story about a huge fortune in order to make them victims of money scams. Make sure you are not one of them and take care not to get involved in money scams. You should be aware that if you would really inherit a large sum of money, nobody would contact you through email to discuss such a delicate issue.

Online, you can get involved in a lot of money scams. You need to pay attention, because you can easily be robbed of your money by people who only do this. There are a lot of money scams and most of them are based on incredible stories, like this one that implies inheriting an immense amount of money. The scamers always come up with something new, so if it is not the fortune, it is surely a sick baby or a poor family who needs your help. Before offering your money online, you should pay attention to avoid being the victim of money scams.

The cons always send emails and the one that includes the fortune story is a classic in the history of money scams. Many people offered a fortune instead of receiving one once they offered all the requested information through email. Take care and avoid money scams. You should report all the suspect emails that request you any information that should not be offered in such a manner. Do not believe everything you read and before donating online check with a lot of attention the people that ask you for money. A lot of money asked through email or simply online are obtained through money scams wisely disguised in charity cases.

Today’s economy is giving everyone a hard time, as the financial crisis has affected all of us. This led to many people losing their jobs or being at risk of being laid off. Therefore, most of these people are deceived by money scams and end up losing everything that they have. Burglars have come up with so many money scams in the recent years, that even the most knowledgeable expert may be tricked into thinking that they are legitimate. In the United Kingdom, the percentage of money scams has also increased. Here are the most common money scams in the UK, for you to know what to stay away from.

Bogus Holiday Clubs are money scams in which customers are approached when they are on holiday or at home in Britain. They become victims of the scam after they are lured with the promise of a free holiday, in exchange for taking part of a presentation. However, during that presentation, they are pressured into agreeing to a holiday club which offers great holidays worldwide in top-class resorts. Later on, victims come across the unpleasant surprise of the holiday not being free after all, since they must still pay for flights and other add-ons. Moreover, the dates and destinations are not clearly specified, so the promised holidays are usually not available at the wanted time and place.

Other common money scams imply high-risk investments. These money scams take advantage of people’s ingenuity. Victims are approached by either phone, letter or e-mail and are given the chance to make an investment in ‘rare’ high-value items, such as shares, gemstones, or fine wine. They are lured with the promise of those items rising in value sky high. However, the items purchased are often over-prices and have a very high risk, therefore making it difficult to sell on.

Pyramid selling and chain letters are also money scams you should look out for. These money scams work on a very simple principle: consumers are asked to become a member by paying an amount of money, with the promise of them making money in return as long as they recruit new members, therefore creating a pyramid. However, an endless supply of new members is demanded in order for each member to earn some money. These money scams seem legit and therefore trick many people into losing their money.

In an age where everything goes on the Internet from online jobs to socialising platforms, there is also the risk of people being subject to online money scams. Online money scams have become a regular thing and it is incredibly easy to do. How can you tell that you are subject to online money scams? First of all, most of the money scams require a registration fee, with promises that you will get your money back within the first few days. Most of the online money scams do not actually offer you a service, but rather a package or some trivial product to help get you started.

There are several types of online money scams. For instance, the most dangerous type of money scams are the pyramid scams. The mechanism is easy. You are asked a certain amount of money, and they say that you will get a high return of investment within a first assignment. The explanation and legality of the preparation seem very logical, although some details are intentionally left out. Instead of giving you all these details, it talks about the things you could do with all the extra money, by providing fictional testimonials. Indeed you make some money at first, then you are asked to provide even more people. It is just like a multi-level marketing business. The more people the scammers have under them, the bigger the money scams are.

Other money scams have a different mechanism. For instance, how many times have you won the Nigerian lottery without ever having entered? Or maybe you have some long lost rich relatives in Africa that you did not know about. You can check for money scams by searching online. Make sure you do not fall for the online tricks. You should try and make deals with trustworthy companies, as you will be sure they will not break the law. Before signing or accepting to send money, make sure you demand all the necessary details and information about that particular company.

If you plan to start a business and you are afraid you cannot do it on your own, forget about it. Having an associate is great, but also risky. If somebody comes to you with the proposal of a new business, you should pay attention to him or her, but take the decision of getting involved or not by yourself. The financial crisis makes many victims, that is way many pose in business men or business women, but are actually involved in money scams. You should be able to avoid money scams, as it may let you broke or in great debt. Money scams are an easy way to earn money, so, many people try these. And unfortunately, a lot of money scams come disguised as great opportunities. If someone proposes you to be his or her partner in a new business, out of the blue, you should be very careful not to fall as the victim of money scams.

Money scams usually come from the most unexpected persons. Of course, those involved in dirty businesses like these will try to seem great people, but even the wolf posed as a sheep, right? There are some things you need to do when receiving the proposal to be an associate of a new business from a person who you do not know very well. Firstly, you should check the chances of that business. Secondly, you should verify all the information you received. Not many people are eager to start a business with a stranger, so, you may be attracted by money scams.

Before getting involved in a new business, you should know your business partner very well. Doing this without a lot of communication and a business plan can only lead to failure. If you are not sure about it, do not go further. You surely do not want to be involved in money scams. A lot of people are easy preys of money scams, but you should learn how to avoid it. And if you are not sure you could succeed in a business by yourself, you should better wait for some time and learn meanwhile. This way you will get better day by day in what you do and you will be able to earn great money by yourself, without risking to be involved in money scams because of suspicious business partners.

We live in an era of information, but paradoxically we are less informed day by day. Although everything is computerized now, somehow is easier to be a victim in the digital era. And the greatest danger of Internet are money scams. Everybody can fall in the trap of a money scams, because a lot of cons use Internet in order to make new victims that are unaware of the dirty business they run. This is why is better to pay attention and to carefully use our credit cards online. And although it may seem exaggerated to many, before making an online payment, is better to run a check to see if we are not scammed.

Basic money scams are related to mail. A lot of people send us emails telling us we are inheritors of an obscure African king that nobody heard of and they need to transfer a big amount of money to us urgently. This kind of money scams work if the receiver of the email sends his or her personal data. And thanks to easy money scams like these, the one who sends the personal data will see how his or her bank account is suddenly empty. Other money scams are based on the kindness of people. Blogs and websites with pictures of suffering babies are built and donations are asked. This is why if we want to donate to sick babies or children is better to carefully verify the story first. If not, we can easily realize that we have been tricked with one of those money scams.

Some bloggers who sell all kind of products online are also scammers. Because they have a small target, money scams are easily done using all kind of reasons. They can blame the postman for not bringing the packages they were supposed to send or internal errors of the post. It is important to be aware of the money scams and to avoid them. When browsing the Internet we should only give our personal data to trusted sites and never to strangers, no matter the reason they claim to need it for.