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When things are just plodding along and things feel mostly normal in the world, we tend to fall into a bit of a lull with regards to scams. They’re always out there, but it feels as though we’ll be ok if we just go to work, pay our bills and stay away from the dark alleys. There are times though when scams really ramp up. Those would be the good times and the bad times. During the good times, everybody has money and there are many that are eager to be relieved of it. That’s when scammers will ratchet things up a notch. That’s not so bad because during the good times, things are good and getting back on your feet after being scammed does take some work, but by and large isn’t a big deal.

Unfortunately we’re headed into some bad times. That’s another time that scammers ratchet things up a notch. The advantage here is not the amount of money that’s out there to scam because there isn’t much of it. Unfortunately there will shortly be a multitude of desperate individuals that will be willing to part with what little they have believing they’ve found a way out. The downtrodden are very likely to be motivated by the possibility of hope. It’s sad to know that there will be some taking advantage of those who simply can’t recover, but it is very likely.

Thankfully though, along with the investigative journalists, we now have an army of individuals spreading the word about the various scams that are out there. Miss Gullible is one of those who are willing to put up with a moment of embarrassment in order to help us avoid the mistakes they’ve made. She has a great post, if not a little gut wrenching to read, on ponzi schemes and their new variant, HYIPs. Some of you may read that and wonder why on earth someone would invest in something so intangible? Well its’ not always as clear as you may think. A well written pitch and some amount of corroborating evidence can go a long way towards soothing our internal scam alarms. Just have a look at the US markets. When you actually look at what they were doing, you would think that only the most insane people on earth would have put money in there. Yet there were hundreds of millions of investors there, only some of them certifiable.

You see that’s the rough part about a scam. It’s only obvious after you’ve been had. From the front, a scam looks legitimate. Very legitimate. They promise what you want and ask only what you can give. That’s why they work and that’s why every modern country has a police detachment specifically designated to deal with scams against their citizens.

If you ever are taken by a scam, hopefully you won’t have sent too much money down the river and you can chalk it up to a life lesson. Think of being taken at three card Monte in a dark alley as an example. But if you find yourself in a real mess, then Miss Gullibe has some advice. Her advice is largely Australia related, but you won’t have to look long in your phone book to find similar agencies in Canada, the US, UK, etc… I think the best advice she gives is to talk to your family about this. Yes you will get some non-constructive criticisms, but that will pass quickly. If you have a decent family, they’ll be there to help you get through the ordeal, offering an objective voice to make sure you don’t get scammed again since you’ll likely be at your most vulnerable.

Scams are scary. They’re even scarier now that they’ve emerged from the shadows of dark alleys and found their way into our mailboxes, telephones and email inboxes. Miss Gullible is there to share her experiences though and by doing so, she’s helping the rest of us navigate through some treacherous waters. Remember, there’s pretty much no honest way to get rich quick. Even those who we think did get rich quick almost always have a lifetime of hard work behind them that we just haven’t been witness to.

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