The deceit of the human psyche
There have always been scams. Only the procedure and the fields of activity have been adapted to the times. Today they are called romance scams, investment and telephone fraud, sextortion, phishing or CEO fraud. The scammers have always exploited people’s personal vulnerabilities by influencing their victims with a great deal of psychological skill and thus enticing them into an unwanted action.
Social engineering is the manipulative influencing of the human psyche. Fraudsters specifically address personality traits such as helpfulness, need for harmony, trust in authority or stinginess. As a rule, they also create a high degree of temporal or emotional pressure, for example by triggering a feeling of shame or responsibility in the victim.
The supposed CEO appeals to the trust in authority of release when, under time pressure, he asks for money to be transferred abroad. The phone scammer takes advantage of the helpfulness and credulity of seniors when he asks them to give him cash to uncover a mole in the bank. The love scammer, on the other hand, appeals to his victims’ need for harmony, and the investment scammer catches the small saver with the promise of quick money.
So anyone who claims they will never fall for a scammer may already be playing into the scammer’s hands by catching them off guard. On the other hand, if you know your personal weaknesses, you can react more soberly and thoughtfully in corresponding situations. Then credulous singles act more cautiously when dating online, and bargain hunters may forego the advance payment when buying on an online marketplace and prefer to order from a trusted retailer.