The rise of the internet has opened up the world to millions of people. It is now possible to do things that were unheard of only ten or even five years ago.
Unfortunately the internet is not free from scams and scammers. Some scams are especially designed to take advantage of the way the internet works.
A lot of internet scams take place without the victim even noticing. It is only when their credit card statement or phone bill arrives that the person realises that they might have been scammed.
Examples:
'Nigerian 419' scams
You are promised huge rewards if you help someone transfer money out of their country by paying fees or giving them your bank account details.
Transferring money for someone else
If you agree to transfer money for someone you don’t know, you let scammers use your bank account to ‘launder’ their dirty money. This puts you and your money in the firing line.
Ring tone scams
Misleading offers for ‘free’ or cheap ring tones that end up being a subscription or premium rate service.
Up-front payment scams
You are asked to send money upfront for a product or ‘reward’. You will end up with something much less than you expected, or nothing at all.
With this in mind, how safe is it then for one to transact online?
