Scam Secrets
Scam Secrets
Podcast Description
It might look like a perfectly ordinary message. It could come from someone you thought you trusted. Or it could be a phone call that catches you off guard. Whatever the method, the goal is the same. They want your money.But if you know their secrets, you can spot the red flags before it is too late.Shari Vahl, who has investigated fraud for the BBC for 20 years, is joined by the criminologist and forensic linguist, Dr Elisabeth Carter, and Alex Wood - a former criminal who now tries to stop scams - to dissect the shadiest techniques criminals use to steal your cash. In each episode, they dig deep into a different scam, with first-hand accounts from the people targeted, forensic analysis of the techniques and mind games being used - and even secret recordings of the scammers themselves.
Scam Secrets will publish weekly from 31 July. Subscribe on BBC Sounds so you never miss an episode.
You can also email the Scam Secrets team - tell them which scams you want them to unpick: [email protected]
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast focuses on the mechanics of fraud and specific scam tactics, exploring themes such as dating scams, celebrity impersonation fraud, and phone scams. Episode examples include breakdowns of devastating romance scams and the psychological manipulation behind them, as well as firsthand accounts from victims and analyses of audio recordings from criminals.
It might look like a perfectly ordinary message. It could come from someone you thought you trusted. Or it could be a phone call that catches you off guard. Whatever the method, the goal is the same. They want your money.
But if you know their secrets, you can spot the red flags before it is too late.
Shari Vahl, who has investigated fraud for the BBC for 20 years, is joined by the criminologist and forensic linguist, Dr Elisabeth Carter, and Alex Wood – a former criminal who now tries to stop scams – to dissect the shadiest techniques criminals use to steal your cash.
In each episode, they dig deep into a different scam, with first-hand accounts from the people targeted, forensic analysis of the techniques and mind games being used – and even secret recordings of the scammers themselves.
Scam Secrets will publish weekly from 31 July. Subscribe on BBC Sounds so you never miss an episode.
You can also email the Scam Secrets team – tell them which scams you want them to unpick: [email protected]
A message pops up. It’s a scam, you can spot that. But who sent it? Where in the world did it come from? And how has it ended up in your inbox? For this special episode of Scam Secrets, the team visit the United Nations Global Fraud Summit in Vienna. Pretty much everyone engaged in the world fight against scams is there too, from politicians and police to the biggest tech companies on the planet. Challenged by listener Catherine to find out more about the criminals who stole £200,000 from her dad in the previous episode, Shari Vahl, Dr Lis Carter and Alex Wood ask Interpol why it isn’t easier to track criminals down. And the organised crime chief of the United Nations tells us how networks of global organised crime lie behind that message you received – and offers harrowing evidence of why the scammers are often victims too.
PRESENTER: SHARI VAHL
PRODUCER: TOM MOSELEY
Disclaimer
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