If it’s too good to be true, it probably is.
That line should be imbedded in the memory of everyone, yet people continue to be taken for thousands of dollars by persistent scammers.
The latest scourge is the so-called grandparent scam, in which a senior is targeted.
The scammer calls the senior and poses as a grandchild who is in trouble and needs money.
One elderly Kamloops residents was taken for $4,000.
Another Kamloopsian fell victim to the so-called mystery-shopper scam, in which a person is contacted out of the blue, offered a mystery-shopping job, sent a bank draft and asked to deposit it in their account and send some back to the employer.
Of course, the bank draft is fake and the victim loses what they send back — in this latest case, $11,000.
Those who prey on honest folks are reprehensible.
But there will always be bad guys looking to steal from the good guys.
It is incumbent upon the good guys to not be scammed.
It is simply inexcusable for a clear-thinking, perfectly intelligent person to be duped by these scams.
The media has spilled gallons of ink and burned up the airwaves in a constant practise of reporting on these cons.
The RCMP has even established a dedicated phone line (250-828-3266) to accept calls on scams.
This high-tech, online age offers the perfect breeding ground for scammers.
However, it also provides would-be victims with more than enough information on how not to be taken to the cleaners.
Read this newspaper. Read other newspapers. Turn on the radio and listen to the news. Watch a bit of the TV news. Go online and spend a few minutes at various news sites. Join Rural Crime Watch or check out their website.
One cannot avoid being exposed to what scams exist, how they work and how to avoid becoming a victim.
There is absolutely no reason to be scammed.
Use your common sense, do your homework and avoid becoming the subject of the next headline.
