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Scammers use sophisticated psychological techniques to exploit human vulnerabilities and bypass rational thought, coercing victims into making impulsive decisions. They spread their methods around many potential victims to see who is vulnerable or focus on a specific person. Some of these psychological techniques include random phone calls, creating a sense of urgency, building rapport with casual talk, helping me to help you, appealing to authority, and using voice deepfakes.
Scammers start with small requests to establish a sense of commitment, which leads to compliance with larger demands. They may pretend to be someone you've engaged to work on your house or one of your children using a friend's phone to call you. This tactic aims to prevent victims from assessing the situation logically or seeking advice, pressuring them into rushed decisions. They may threaten legal trouble to instill fear, promise high investment returns to exploit greed, or share fabricated distressing stories to elicit sympathy and financial assistance.
Building rapport with casual talk involves extended conversation, creating a psychological commitment to their scheme. It is natural to be friendly with people who are friendly towards us, but staying on the line for long periods can create cognitive fatigue, making the victim more open to suggestions and isolated from friends or family who might recognize and counteract the scam.
Helping me to help you involves creating a situation where they help solve a real or imaginary problem, then asking for something you wouldn't normally do because of the "social debt": they helped you first. For example, a hacker might attack a corporate network, causing it to slow down, then call you, pretending to be from your organization, perhaps as a recent hire not yet on the company's contact list. They "help" you by turning off the attack, leaving you suitably grateful.
A week later, they call again and ask for sensitive information, such as the CEO's password. You know company policy is to not divulge it, but the scammer will ask if you remember them and come up with an excuse for why they really need this password. The balance of the social debt says you will help them.
Applying to authority involves posing as line managers, officials from government agencies, banks, or other authoritative bodies, exploiting our natural tendency to obey authority. Scams operate at varying levels of sophistication, from simple to complex. To defend against a scam, verify identity, agree on a "safe word" with family members, watch out for pressure tactics, and hang up or not respond if you are not sure about even the slightest detail. If you really owe a tax debt, the ATO will write to you.
