11 women got together on May 20th to have a lively discussion about scams and how to protect ourselves and our information from them. Thanks to Linda and Chris for facilitating the discussion and taking notes and to Pam Egan, a tech savvy Women’s Connection MSP member, who joined the meeting to share some information and help lead the discussion. Everyone had a story about a scam they’ve encountered or been a victim of or have had a family member be a victim of. We’re all very weary of dealing with scams but it seems like it’s a way of life.
Pam shared some information about the warning signs of a scam?
1) They pretend to be from an organization you know. Or someone contacting you on behalf of the government or make up a name that sounds official.
2) There’s always a problem you need to address (you owe money, there’s a virus on your computer, a problem with your account) or you just won a prize.
3) They pressure you to act immediately. Or threaten you that something bad will happen (lose access/information, arrest, deportation).
4) Must pay in a certain way -gift cards, cryptocurrency. Or they might say they send you a fake check to “cash” and then have you send money to them, but their check never clears.
Always look at the e-mail address something comes from. You can often tell it’s not really from the person or business you know. If so, delete, do not open, do not click on links.
Scams can also come through social media – not just e-mail or phone calls. It can look very real but is fake. Someone shared an example of something that looked like messages from Facebook messenger but was a link to a scam/virus.
The group shared lots of ideas about how to minimize their exposure to scams.
On Tuesday, June 17, at 6:30-8:00 PM via zoom, we will have a group discussion on Bargain Hunting. How do you find good deals when shopping? What experience have people had with things like Facebook Marketplace? Ebay? What stores have the best prices? Coupons? Loyalty cards?, etc.
At the June meeting, we will decide if we want to get together IN PERSON sometime in the summer or if we might take a couple months off.
All are welcome to join us on zoom. Join the group or contact Cyndy using the info above.