Jim Browning, not his real name, takes on the scammers.

https://www.aarp.org/money/sca...rt-scam-exposed.html

Fascinating and super rewarding article.
I love learning of such modern good-guy outlaws who fight fire with fire. (Think they're called "white hats" in the biz.)

Well written too.*

Thanks, wtg!

All the same , I'm left wondering why earnings from his you-tube fans (now that he's gone viral) aren't themselves enough to retire on - provided he's one of the Americans for whom that's a supreme goal. (Aren't clicks, at least past a point, able to be monetized?)

*It makes for such exciting copy, in fact, I feel sure there's a movie in there. SO much money being stolen, such pitiable victims, such Harry Potteresque powers fighting to save them!

Wow!

Probably as good a time as any to remind everyone to never click on a "cold" link--by that, I mean a link that is inside an email that you didn't expect to see.

If you get a call from someone who claims to be representing your bank, or some other company you do business with, tell them you are busy, but to call you back. Then google the company and call their real phone number's customer support and ask if they have authorized someone to act on their behalf to tell you your computer is broken, your bank account has been compromised, or what have you. Do not ask the caller to give you a phone number to call and verify their actions. They will either hang up or give you a fake number, sometimes with a fake "oh yes, this is a legitimate request" song and dance.

A reliable customer service department will take your inquiry seriously.

We recently got two calls from our bank branch—just to ask if there was anything they could do for us, or if we had any questions about banking. Very open-ended. Seemed legit.

Maybe with COVID, fewer people are coming in, so they’re reaching out.

Also, they’ve been closing some branches.