Since authors must maintain an online presence and many receive scam messages, I’m addressing online safety today.
On impulse during a recent trip to the library, I checked out Keanu Reeves Is Not in Love with You by Becky Holmes. The author relates how she communicated with scammers and victims in this lively and well-researched book. The book focuses on romance scams; but the advice applies to all social media cons, and other sources confirm her findings. Though the text is littered with profanity, I recommend the book for a deep dive into romance scams. For instance, I learned:
Why are they scamming?
For one, the lifestyle is glamorized.
Second, some of the scammers are being trafficked. Lured to a foreign country with the promise of a legitimate job, they arrive to discover they must cheat others or they will be punished.
Third, some scammers hate the people they’re conning. A letter Holmes quotes, written by a Nigerian swindler to a British woman, says, in part, that they resent the colonists he calls “white reptiles” who exploited their country and stole their resources. Their hatred is so deep that they hope their victims become brokenhearted and homeless. The letter also refers to the con artist’s involvement in the occult, which the book maintains is common.
How are they scamming?
A message beginning with “Hello dear” or “Hello Beautiful” should not be answered. The moment you do, you may be susceptible to an abusive relationship. The con artist will court you so you’ll fall in love and will do anything for them, then be demeaned and harassed if you don’t send money. Once you run out of money, they don’t care if you beg, borrow, or steal. To them, depleting your funds is not an excuse.
Under no circumstances should you send any money or gift cards to anyone you’ve never met. Scammers rely on victims who do not understand overseas laws and careers to convince people to send money for fake situations that would never happen and imaginary fees.
Which brings me to …
If a friend or family member suddenly starts asking to borrow money and won’t tell you why, investigate. If this person is involved in an internet scam, you’ll be tangentially a victim as a lender because your friend will never receive the funds to repay you.
Suspicious message? What now?
Scammers hoping to rip off writers are likely to promise business propositions that have no way of being profitable for anyone but the scammer. If you are concerned about a message, forward it to your literary agent. Do not click any links. Often, we can discover information that may not be easily obtainable to most authors. We should be able to help you discern who’s legitimate and who isn’t. For instance, I recently vetted a person for an author and confirmed that he is a genuine Christian businessman. I had the connections to do so, whereas the author did not. I’m always happy to help my authors be safe online.
Additional note
Soon after I wrote this, I received the following message on my Facebook wall from “Stephen Townsend.” I’ve never been in contact with him, and I didn’t correct the grammar errors contained in the message:
Honey it me Our base camp was under attack and many things were being destroyed by ISIS. I lost many contacts so I’m not making use of the other account so just click on this my current profile and send me a direct message or a friend request thank you….
I read this out loud to my real Honey, who said, “You are popular in Nigeria.” I maintain that my money would be popular in Nigeria. However, they’ll never find out.
I clicked nothing. I reported the message to Facebook, then deleted it. I doubt Facebook will respond since technically, the message probably does not violate what they call their “community standards.” However, if this happens to you, I recommend you also report and delete it.
