The Rise of Romance Scams and the Influence of Social Media

3min Snip

00:00

Play full episode

Summary

Transcript

Episode notes

This chapter explores the prevalence of scams, especially romance scams, on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. It discusses the challenges of prosecuting scammers operating outside the victim's country and highlights the ease for scammers to gather personal information through targeted ads and innocent friend requests.

A lot of us would like to think we could spot a scam a mile away. Spelling errors, suspicious email addresses and requests for money… all tip offs that something isn't right.

But none of us are immune to scammers' psychological tricks – not even psychologists.

In this episode, forensic neuropsychologist Dr Stacey Wood reveals the tricks and techniques scammers use, and what makes us most vulnerable to their tactics.