Finance
How to stay protected from pig butchering financial scams? Here are 7 key steps
In simpler terms, pig butchering is a version of smishing where scammers use social media platforms for cyber theft. As the name suggests, the victim is being ‘fattened up’ through validation and friendship before ‘butchering’ i.e. stealing of funds. A simple ‘Hi/Hello’ on a social media platform from a stranger’s profile can turn into a big scam.
Also Read: ‘Pig butchering’ scams: Zerodha’s Nithin Kamath explains how these work, shares ways to remain protected
How does the pig butchering scam happen?
Receiving messages or calls from wrong numbers was a rare occurrence a few years back. However, calls, text messages and connection requests from unknown people are becoming a frequent event on social media and dating applications. As the online relationship progresses, the scammer introduces what seems like a golden investment opportunity.
This less recognized yet equally harmful tactic involves fake job offers. Here, scammers prey on job seekers by offering attractive positions, sometimes overseas. They use emotional manipulation to build trust.
Scammers often go the extra mile by creating fake apps and websites that mimic real financial institutions. Throughout the scam, there’s a heavy reliance on emotional manipulation. The scammer might act as a romantic interest or a supportive friend. This emotional connection makes it harder for the victim to doubt their intentions.
Once trust is established and the victim is emotionally invested, significant financial transactions are initiated. Whether it’s through fake investments or fraudulent job offers, the end goal is the same: to drain as much money as possible from the victim.
Also Read: Beware of Scams: Tips for safely investing in the digital world
Important steps to protect from these scams
Stay informed: The first step in protecting yourself from financial fraud is to be aware that these scams exist. Knowing how they work can help you identify and avoid them before it’s too late. Scammers are constantly devising new and sophisticated tactics to exploit vulnerable people, so it’s important to stay vigilant.
Always double-check: If someone online suggests an investment or job, research it thoroughly. Look up the company or offer online, read reviews, and see if it’s recognized by official authorities.
Be vigilant with online friends: Always be cautious when talking to people you just started talking with, especially if they start talking about finances or investments. Avoid discussing financial matters with people online.
Keep personal information to yourself: Never share your personal or financial details like bank account details, passwords, and other sensitive information with someone you’ve just met online. Sharing personal information makes it easier for scamsters to hack into your bank accounts, so be wary of who you share it with.
Never make rushed financial decisions: If you’re being pressured to invest quickly or pay for a job opportunity, that’s a major red flag. Scammers often try to create a sense of urgency, pushing you to act before you have time to think it over. Take the time to verify the legitimacy of any investment or job prospect.
Always check the source: Don’t just take their word for it. Do your research. Look up the company or investment platform they mention. Check for the company’s physical address, licensing information, customer reviews, and social media presence. Cross-reference details across multiple reliable sources.
Get a second option before investing: Before making any investment or sharing personal details, talk to someone you trust like a family member who knows finances, a friend or a professional financial advisor. Sometimes, just talking about it out loud can reveal red flags you might not have noticed initially.
Also Read: Shielding your digital assets: How cyber insurance can provide a safety net in the face of growing cyber threats
Key takeaway
While scammers continue to devise new and sophisticated tactics, arming oneself with awareness, caution, and diligence is the key. By staying alert to the warning signs, verifying the legitimacy of any opportunities presented, and resisting the urge to make rushed decisions, individuals can significantly reduce their risk of becoming victims.
If a proposition or investment opportunity seems too good to be true, trust your instincts and analyse it carefully. It’s better to miss out on a potential opportunity than to lose your hard-earned money to a clever con artist.
Dhiren .V. Dedhia, Head – Enterprise Solutions, CrossFraud
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Published: 27 Apr 2024, 10:31 AM IST
Finance
Campaign finance offender lost seven bids for office but wins mercy from elections panel • Rhode Island Current
A perennial candidate for state and local office will be the first offender of state campaign finance requirements to have his fines reduced.
The Rhode Island Board of Elections on Tuesday voted 3-0 to slash financial penalties owed by former candidate Daniel Grzych by nearly 90%. Grzych, a Providence resident, ran unsuccessfully as an independent for seven state and local races spanning 2002 to 2014. He previously owed more than $71,000 in fines to the state elections board for submitting late the regular financial reports required during his time as a candidate.
Now, he’ll owe just $6,600 — three times the amount he spent over the five campaigns during which he missed reporting deadlines. The board’s decision Tuesday marks the first time using newly enacted regulation change giving the appointed elections panel more leeway to reduce fines for offenders. The rule change adopted in 2023 relies on a formula based on the number of violations to cap fines at a lower amount while letting the elections board close campaign finance accounts so fees don’t keep accruing.
Under the formula included in the updated state rules, Grzych could have had his fine reduced to about $28,000, said Ric Thornton, the board’s campaign finance director.
However, given Grzych’s actual spending during his span of failed candidacies — amounting to $2,200, all of which was self-funded — Ray Marcaccio, the board’s attorney suggested an even lower fine.
“The purpose for the regulation is to make sure whatever we do by way of fine and penalty is proportional to the offense that occurred,” Marcaccio said. “The way the statute was written, a lot of these daily amounts continue to accrue almost exponentially.”
Indeed, 93% of the $6.1 million in unpaid financial penalties for late or missing campaign reports as of September come from just 15% of the offenders, with many of the top violators unable to pay, or unreachable, according to data provided by Thornton. Grzych once held the dubious distinction of a spot in the top 10 list of violators with the largest outstanding fines, according to an Associated Press story in 2015. As of September 2023, Grzych dropped to the 25th ranking, though the amount of overdue penalties was unchanged.
In an only-in-Rhode Island moment, former Rep. John DeSimone, who defeated Grzych in the 2012 Democratic primary for the House District 5 seat, is now the attorney for his former political opponent. The pair appeared together before the Board of Elections to explain the circumstances that led to Grzych’s late filings and subsequent lack of response to notices about his overdue payments.
“He never had a sophisticated campaign,” DeSimone said. “As I recall, he had a dump truck that he put signs on and drove it around. That was the extent of his campaign.”
Grzych also explained how personal health issues as well as responsibilities caring for ailing family members swallowed his attention over the ensuing 20 years, making him unaware of the overdue fines for late campaign finance reports, despite the many certified mail notices he was sent.
“I don’t want to say I was dumb, but I didn’t know all the facts,” Grzych, 71 said. “ I lost track of a lot of things over the last 20-something years.”
He never had a sophisticated campaign. As I recall, he had a dump truck that he put signs on and drove it around. That was the extent of his campaign.
– Former Rep. John DeSimone, attorney representing Daniel Grzych
He is also facing foreclosure for the Providence home he owns with two other people, after they stopped making payments on their $170,000 mortgage loan beginning in 2020, according to the complaint filed by HSBC Bank in June 2023 in Providence County Superior Court. As of Tuesday, $230,000 remains on the mortgage payment, though a pending agreement selling the property for $320,000 is expected to close soon, John DeSimone said.
The Rhode Island Board of Elections, which is named as a party of interest in the case because it has a lien on the property stemming from Grzych’s outstanding fines, has spent more than $1,000 on court and legal fees as well as certified mail notifying Grzych of his outstanding fines, Thornton said.
Board member Louis DeSimone abstained from the vote due to the appearance of conflict of interest; he is John DeSimone’s first cousin, though he said they have no economic ties. Board members Diane Mederos, Randall Jackvony and Michael Connors were absent from the meeting.
Prior to the vote, the board also met behind closed doors for 45 minutes to discuss the foreclosure case, but did not take any votes shared during the public session.
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FIS has launched an embedded finance platform designed for use by financial institutions, businesses and software developers.
The new “Atelio by FIS” platform can help any company collect deposits, move money, issue cards, send invoices, fight fraud, forecast cash flows and better understand customer behavior, the company said in a Tuesday (May 7) press release.
“Our scale, distribution and continued investment in technology have given us the foundation to unlock our financial capabilities to a wider audience and power the next generation of financial innovation,” Tarun Bhatnagar, president of platform and enterprise products at FIS, said in the release.
Atelio delivers existing FIS financial technology via components that are easy to embed in a secure and compliant manner, according to the release.
The platform builds on the company’s history of service to the financial services industry, its technology and its expertise in risk and compliance, offering these resources as a service, the release said.
With these capabilities, financial institutions, businesses and software developers can deliver financial offerings to their customers at the point where they are needed, per the release.
One company that is already building on Atelio is College Ave, which used the platform to launch a new financial product for college students, according to the release.
“We wanted a product that could bring together an account, credit card and payments into a single experience, and Atelio allowed us to offer a custom solution through our platform in a simple and secure process, which has been hugely beneficial to us in meeting our customers’ needs,” Karen Boltz, head of product management at College Ave, said in the release.
PYMNTS Intelligence has found that embedded finance creates better experiences for consumers by making their interactions with brands seamless, convenient and personalized.
This is important because 49% of consumers said they would probably quit an online purchase if they encountered difficulty checking out and a lack of payment choice, according to “How Nonfinancial Brands Can Benefit from Offering Embedded Financial Services,” a PYMNTS Intelligence and Galileo collaboration.
The report also found that 88% of companies that offer embedded finance said it increased customer engagement.
TAIPEI — The Taiwanese financial conglomerate SinoPac Holdings is entering the Cambodian banking industry by acquiring a local institution that is majority-held by Western investors, the latest example of the diversification of Taiwanese investment into Southeast Asia.
SinoPac announced over the weekend that its subsidiary Bank SinoPac will acquire 100% of Amret, Cambodia’s largest microfinance deposit-taking institution by total assets, from existing shareholders.
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