Cognitive Heist series #4: The Ghost - Panic, Urgency, and the Speed of Deception

👻 New Deceptive Minds issue: Cognitive Heist series issue #4 -- The Ghost

The ghost doesn’t break in. It doesn’t even exist. It just panics you into acting-- fast, unthinking, exposed.

This issue explores one of the most dangerous tools in a scammer’s toolkit: urgency. We unpack:

🧠 The psychology of panic and why urgency shuts down critical thinking

📞 Real-world scams that weaponize fake emergencies

🕯️ A chilling tie-in to folklore: the crying child at the door

🐙 And yes, there are tentacles. Always tentacles.

The Ghost's superpower is tricking you into moving before you think.

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Check out the most recent FAIK Files podcast: Dark Knowledge & Hidden Agendas

• Audio version: https://pod.link/1771521321/episode/ae2224ed846ac80ad3c8e2fbc0185087
• YouTube version: https://youtu.be/U7447dpffao

Interesting research of the week: Sweet-talk the bots: New research shows how LLMs respond to human persuasion tricks

• Geekwire article: https://www.geekwire.com/2025/sweet-talk-the-bots-new-research-shows-how-llms-respond-to-human-persuasion-tricks/
• Wharton School blog post: https://gail.wharton.upenn.edu/research-and-insights/call-me-a-jerk-persuading-ai/

Until next week... stay safe out there!

Perry

P.S. -- Just a quick reminder that I've got a great book out that's all about deepfakes, disinformation, and deception. Be sure to check it out if you haven't already: https://ThisBookIsFAIK.com.

P.P.S -- Did you know that we have a text version of this newsletter? Check it out on LinkedIn or at The Deception Project website.

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