Anyone want to start a key post on "How to protect yourself against scams"?

[Brendan Burgess]

1) factors suggesting it's a scam
2) 5 most common scams
3) Things you should never do

• buy something as a result of a cold-call

• pay by a cash transfer company

4) What to do if you are scammed

 

[Mrmr]

1) factors suggesting it's a scam
Unsolicited contact- no company would usually ever contact you regarding a personal issue you have not contacted them about.
General calls lacking specifics i.e 'about your computer security' or 'from windows'
Either asking for common personal security information i.e mothers
maiden name, date of birth or address or windows password
(possibility of you using common passwords) or leading you to create
a remote logon session so they can 'fix' your computer which is actually software to record activities you perform, i.e online banking.
Pop ups onscreen on computer, leading to malware as above.

3) Things you should never do
Respond with any information to an unsolicited approach

 

[Brendan Burgess]

Thanks Mr

Don't return missed calls from suspicious numbers - they are probably foreign premium rate lines

Motley Fool [broken link removed]

Central Bank list of [broken link removed] cold calling people in Ireland

 

[dewdrop]

Especially for older people like myself i need a regular warning about scams as i tend to forget about their existance over time. In fact i welcome the occasional call telling me my computer needs repairing as it alerts me to this scourge. Personal callers should be included in the list of scams.