[00:00:04] This is Scams and Cons News with Jim Grinstead.
[00:00:09] In today's Scams and Cons News, a 44-year-old Atlanta man has been sentenced to 10 years
[00:00:16] and one month in federal prison for his role in a large-scale romance scam, and a 27-year-old
[00:00:23] science teacher's identity was sold on the dark web for just $10, leading to a $4,500
[00:00:29] theft from his bank account.
[00:00:31] But we begin with a family who repeatedly answered knocks on their door from people seeking
[00:00:36] sex.
[00:00:37] One doesn't expect to open their door finding a stranger looking for sex, or for people
[00:00:42] to look through their windows looking back.
[00:00:44] It turns out the couple got caught up in a honey trap scam, where scammers take money for
[00:00:50] a hookup, then send the buyers to a random address.
[00:00:54] Our AI voice Susan tells us what happened.
[00:00:57] All names have been changed.
[00:00:58] A family in Chatterton, Greater Manchester, is living in fear due to a disturbing honey-trap
[00:01:05] scam.
[00:01:05] Sarah and Mike, along with their 20-year-old son, have been plagued by unexpected visitors
[00:01:11] at their home for months.
[00:01:13] Over 30 men have turned up at the family's address in the past two months alone.
[00:01:18] Some merely observe the house, while others have attempted to enter one.
[00:01:22] The family believes these men were lured by promises of sexual services after making online
[00:01:27] payments.
[00:01:28] Despite providing evidence to Greater Manchester Police, including video footage and car registration
[00:01:33] plates, the family has been told there's insufficient proof of a crime.
[00:01:38] This lack of action has left Sarah feeling vulnerable and afraid to answer her own door.
[00:01:43] This incident bears similarities to a recent Westminster scandal where at least 12 men in political
[00:01:48] circles received unsolicited messages in a sexting scam.
[00:01:53] Romance fraud is on the rise, with nearly 9,000 reported cases in 2023, an 8% increase from
[00:02:01] the previous year.
[00:02:02] Dr. David Bilgil, a criminology expert from the University of Manchester, notes that this
[00:02:09] case shares many characteristics of romance fraud.
[00:02:12] He suggests the number of victims could be much larger than currently known.
[00:02:17] The ongoing situation has taken a toll on the family.
[00:02:20] Sarah has been left in tears when confronted with strangers on their property late at night.
[00:02:26] The couple is even considering moving house due to the stress.
[00:02:29] A Virginia man lost his life savings, $272,000, and says he feels financially assaulted.
[00:02:38] He found out about it from a woman at the Fairfax Adult Protection Services.
[00:02:43] Someone notified them because the victim was wiring thousands of dollars and they were concerned.
[00:02:49] NBC4 has more.
[00:02:51] In August of 2023, Charles says a man by the name of Jansen David sent him a friend request
[00:02:58] on Facebook. Seeing the two had mutual friends, Charles accepted it.
[00:03:03] He said he was living in Denver.
[00:03:04] The two started chatting on Messenger until Jansen suggested they'd take their conversations to
[00:03:10] WhatsApp.
[00:03:11] We started talking and it was, you know, what are you interested in?
[00:03:16] Just innocuous.
[00:03:17] Yeah, innocuous conversation.
[00:03:18] He started, you know, saying, you know,
[00:03:21] I'm really interested in you.
[00:03:23] This easy conversation went on for months.
[00:03:26] They talked about family, cooking, past relationships and work.
[00:03:30] In addition to his job, he was doing, you know, some crypto.
[00:03:34] He showed me some stuff.
[00:03:36] He said, do you want to, you know, try maybe investing?
[00:03:39] Charles said he didn't see the harm in this because he's heard about romance scams and knew
[00:03:43] better than to send anyone money.
[00:03:45] But this, this was different because his friend sent him a link to what appeared to be a legitimate
[00:03:52] Bitcoin website.
[00:03:54] He started off small, investing $1,000.
[00:03:57] You know, made some money.
[00:03:59] He did?
[00:04:00] Yeah.
[00:04:00] He even showed us the screenshots of his account.
[00:04:03] The more he invested, the more he made.
[00:04:05] Were you kind of excited about this a little bit?
[00:04:09] It's a new opportunity to make money and enhance my retirement, ultimately.
[00:04:16] The stakes got even higher in December when Jansen convinced Charles to go big.
[00:04:21] And how much did you do?
[00:04:23] $185,000.
[00:04:25] But a few days after wiring the money, that faithful knock at the door from Adult Protection
[00:04:30] Services brought Charles back to reality.
[00:04:33] I've subsequently learned that it was a complete fake.
[00:04:36] A fake Bitcoin website, a fake crypto account, a fake name on the wire transfer, and yes,
[00:04:43] even a fake Facebook friend.
[00:04:46] Okay, the face has changed.
[00:04:47] It's now a woman.
[00:04:49] The bank tried to get his money back, but because it was a wire transfer, they were unable to
[00:04:54] reverse the transaction.
[00:04:56] A 44-year-old Atlanta man has been sentenced to 10 years and one month in federal prison
[00:05:02] for his role in a large-scale romance scam.
[00:05:05] The man was the ringleader of a sophisticated operation that targeted vulnerable seniors,
[00:05:11] particularly widows and divorcees in their 60s and 70s.
[00:05:15] The scammers created false personas, often posing as military members stationed abroad,
[00:05:21] or workers on oil rigs to gain the trust of their victims.
[00:05:25] These are common jobs used by scammers to convince their victims to trust them.
[00:05:29] The scheme resulted in approximately $5.8 million stolen from elderly victims across the United
[00:05:36] States.
[00:05:37] One victim, a 71-year-old woman, lost $324,650 and was forced to sell her properties and refinance
[00:05:47] her home.
[00:05:48] Many victims reported not only financial losses, but also emotional trauma and a loss of trust.
[00:05:55] U.S. District Chief Judge John McConnell Jr. handed down the sentence, emphasizing the need
[00:06:01] to prevent the man from repeating his crimes and to deter others from similar schemes.
[00:06:07] In addition to the prison term, the man was ordered to undergo mental health treatment.
[00:06:12] The scammer pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering.
[00:06:17] His co-defendant is currently serving a 78-month sentence for her involvement in the scheme.
[00:06:24] It's likely we all have cars or trucks with small dents or dings on them.
[00:06:28] There are now people who will come to you in a parking lot and offer to fix them.
[00:06:33] People in official-looking cars, except they're not.
[00:06:37] They're scammers.
[00:06:39] NBC4 in Washington got wise to the plan.
[00:06:42] Brian says she was approached a couple weeks ago, and when she declined, things took a turn
[00:06:46] and they got aggressive.
[00:06:47] They saw a small little dent and they said, we can fix it.
[00:06:51] And I said, no, I'm good.
[00:06:52] And then he almost tried to, like, block me in.
[00:06:55] I was like, no, no, no, but we can fix this.
[00:06:57] I said, I got it.
[00:06:58] Leave me alone.
[00:06:59] It's right there.
[00:07:00] We spotted a similar car while we were working.
[00:07:02] We tried talking to the driver, but they took off before we could catch up.
[00:07:06] Anybody who comes and offers to repair my car in a parking lot, I basically say no thank you.
[00:07:11] It's rare for scammers to get that aggressive, but if they do, notify police immediately.
[00:07:18] This is Scams and Cons News.
[00:07:24] This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp.
[00:07:27] It's November and time for family gatherings, the resurrection of past grudges, and comments
[00:07:34] about how much more you could have done with your life.
[00:07:37] Sure, you're grateful for your family.
[00:07:39] They helped you grow up to be the person you are today, but they can also stress the hell
[00:07:43] out of you.
[00:07:44] One way to deal with it is to call your therapist at BetterHelp.
[00:07:48] Your therapist can help you deal with dreaded moments with your uncle, your mother's reminders
[00:07:53] that you should have been a doctor, or the battle over the remote control to decide which
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[00:07:59] And when it's all over, you can schedule another appointment with your BetterHelp therapist
[00:08:04] to figure out what to do with your sister's new condescending husband.
[00:08:08] Let the gratitude flow with BetterHelp.
[00:08:11] Visit BetterHelp.com slash Scams Cons today to get 10% off your first month.
[00:08:18] That's BetterHelp, H-E-L-P dot com slash Scams Cons.
[00:08:25] Hey there, I'm James, host of Dakota Spotlight.
[00:08:28] We're back with a new season.
[00:08:29] You Killed Chris, A Friend's Fight for Justice.
[00:08:32] It's a chilling throwback to 1968.
[00:08:35] A college freshman, Christine Rothschild, is murdered on campus during her morning walk.
[00:08:39] Join us as we dive into this unsolved case and follow a friend's relentless pursuit of
[00:08:44] the truth, all the way from the flower power era to today.
[00:08:48] Binge You Killed Chris on your favorite app or at DakotaSpotlight.com.
[00:08:58] A 27-year-old science teacher experienced a huge financial loss while on holiday in Cornwell,
[00:09:04] England.
[00:09:05] His identity was sold on the dark web for just $10, leading to a $4,500 theft from his bank account.
[00:09:13] While enjoying his vacation with his wife, the man received an alarming notification indicating
[00:09:19] that a $4,500 payment had been made for a hotel room.
[00:09:23] Upon contacting First Direct Bank, he discovered that a fraudster in Romania had opened an account
[00:09:30] in his name with a digital financial service called Monies and used his details to make
[00:09:35] the purchase.
[00:09:37] This unexpected transaction left the man with only about $25 in his account, forcing the
[00:09:43] couple to cut their holiday short.
[00:09:45] First Direct refunded the stolen amount within a week.
[00:09:48] Despite implementing tighter security measures, the man continues to receive multiple email
[00:09:55] notifications daily regarding unauthorized sign-in attempts.
[00:10:00] He expressed concern about how such a breach could occur, stating that he considered himself
[00:10:05] tech-savvy and had taken precautions against identity theft.
[00:10:09] The man described the frustrating experience of navigating security protocols after the incident.
[00:10:14] He's been enrolled in a 12-month fraud protection program that requires extensive verification for
[00:10:21] significant transactions.
[00:10:23] There is a new and serious technology that threatens your security.
[00:10:28] Take a moment to put your geek hat on.
[00:10:31] TechRadar said security experts are sounding the alarm over a new phishing-as-a-service platform
[00:10:37] called Mamba 2FA.
[00:10:39] Service poses a significant threat to Microsoft 365 accounts.
[00:10:44] The service is available for just $250 a month, allowing cybercriminals to execute sophisticated
[00:10:51] phishing attacks with minimal technical skills.
[00:10:54] Mamba 2FA has been operational since at least November 2023 and has recently undergone multiple
[00:11:01] upgrades to enhance its stealth and effectiveness.
[00:11:04] It employs advanced cloaking techniques such as masking the IP addresses of relay servers and
[00:11:11] rotating phishing-phishing URL domains to avoid detection by security systems.
[00:11:16] The platform enables attackers to create convincing login pages that capture users' authentication
[00:11:22] tokens and multi-factor authentication codes.
[00:11:26] This adversary-in-the-middle approach not only tricks victims into sharing sensitive information,
[00:11:32] but allows them to log into legitimate services simultaneously, increasing the likelihood of successful
[00:11:38] attacks.
[00:11:40] Recent observations indicate that Mamba 2FA is being actively used in phishing campaigns,
[00:11:46] making it a formidable challenge for organizations striving to protect their sensitive data.
[00:11:52] As organizations implement multi-factor authentication as added security layers,
[00:11:57] criminals are adapting by using services like Mamba 2FA to bypass these defenses.
[00:12:03] Experts recommend strengthening security measures through hardware keys, certificate-based authentication,
[00:12:09] and user education to mitigate these evolving threats.
[00:12:14] How do you catch scammers who use cryptocurrency to quickly take your money and move it somewhere
[00:12:19] out of reach?
[00:12:20] The FBI came up with a way.
[00:12:22] The agency created its own Ethereum-based token, NextFund AI, as part of an investigation into
[00:12:29] price manipulation in crypto markets.
[00:12:31] The FBI said the token was developed with the assistance of cooperating witnesses.
[00:12:36] The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged three market makers and nine individuals for allegedly engaging in schemes to inflate the prices of certain crypto assets.
[00:12:47] Additionally, the Department of Justice has brought charges against 18 individuals and entities for widespread fraud and manipulation of the crypto markets.
[00:12:57] Prosecutors alleged that the defendants made false claims about their tokens and engaged in wash trades,
[00:13:04] a practice where trades are executed to create a misleading impression of market activity.
[00:13:09] The accused market makers, QM Quant, CLS Global, and MyTrade,
[00:13:15] are said to have participated in these wash trades on behalf of NextFund AI, unaware it was an FBI creation.
[00:13:22] Jody Cohen, special agent in charge of the FBI's Boston Division,
[00:13:26] said the case represents a new twist to an old-school financial crime.
[00:13:31] She noted that the charges had been filed against leaders of four cryptocurrency companies
[00:13:35] and four market makers who allegedly orchestrated a sophisticated trading scheme that defrauded investors out of millions.
[00:13:43] A market maker from MyTrade MM allegedly claimed that his firm had an edge over competitors
[00:13:49] because they could control the pump and dump, facilitating insider trading.
[00:13:53] While trading activity on NextFund AI was reportedly limited, authorities have disabled trading for the token.
[00:14:01] The DOJ has also secured $25 million in fraudulent proceeds that will be returned to investors.
[00:14:08] This is Scams and Cons News.
[00:14:19] Pack your body bags.
[00:14:21] We're going on a slaycation.
[00:14:22] Tim, what's a slaycation?
[00:14:24] A slaycation is a murder or mysterious death that happens while you're on vacation.
[00:14:29] If you like to mix humor with horror and travel,
[00:14:32] join me, Kim Davis.
[00:14:34] And me, Adam Tex Davis.
[00:14:35] And me, Cherry Colbert.
[00:14:37] As we look at the craziest slaycations that will have you asking what the F is wrong with people.
[00:14:43] You can find Slaycation on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
[00:14:47] Just remember, getting away can be murder.