Best way to identify and avoid scammers on Telegram

Before we dive in on how to avoid scammers, let us first look at the definition of the word, "Scammers"...

Scammers are groups of people who commit fraud or participate in a dishonest scheme to gain money or other valuable information or objects usually in the form of actions that takes advantage of other people's ignorance. Scammers are people that need to be avoided at all costs, else they might trick you into giving up valuable information.

TYPES OF SCAMS

There are many types of scams that a scammer may try to use to scam a person, it includes:

• Phishing
• Vishing
• Investment Scams
• Romance Scams
• Job Scams
• Charity Scams
  
• Lottery or Prize scams

etc

Phishing and Vishing Scams

Phishing is an attack that scammers use to attempt to steal your money, or your identity, by tricking you to reveal personal and sensitive information such as bank information, passwords or credit card numbers, that usually appears to be from a source that pretends to be legitimate. While Vishing is an illegitimate phone call, where scammers pretend to be from organizations and companies like your bank or a governmental agency.

How to Spot it and Prevent yourself from becoming a victim of phishing and Vishing scams

Usually, Telegram tags some fake and illegitimate Channels and Groups as SCAMS, so those channels shouldn't be trusted. Also, anyone or any company asking for your bank information or password that hasn't been verified by telegram (The blue tick by the channel's name), should never be trusted with any sensitive information that you own. Also, scammers may deliberately add you to a group to trick you into giving up your personal information, so to prevent this, change your settings to allow only people in your contacts, to add you to any telegram group. Also, don't forget to report any suspicious activities as this helps other people to avoid being scammed by drawing attention to the scammer's tricks.

Investment Scams

Investment scams are scams that encourage you to hand over money to an illegitimate company or to a company that doesn't exist. Scammers will often promise you that you will get more money than you invested, which is often not the case. This is very rampant in Telegram, especially with cryptocurrencies where illegitimate people often create fake cryptocurrencies so that people would buy cryptos that do not exist. Rug Pulls are also used to scam ignorant people that want to make money quickly using cryptocurrencies. 

How to Spot it and Prevent yourself from becoming a victim of investment scams

Anyone who asks you to send them money, promising you that you will receive more than you paid for, without actually signing any contract or without any legal backing is a scammer. Never send a stranger money for investments. If anyone shady contacts you, report their accounts and block them. Never trust any telegram groups or channels asking for money, especially the ones labelled as scams by telegram authorities. There is no such thing as doubling your money in a short amount of time without you doing anything legal. Be cautious.

Romance Scams

Romance scams are scams that involve scammers posing as people that seem to be interested in dating you, they will be up-front about joining you and your family and will text you, get to know you over time and gradually become affectionate and romantic. They usually use another person's photos as their profile pic. When you have become somewhat attached, they will start asking and requesting money, usually for a sick relative or preparations to come and visit. They will then take your money and vanish, leaving you confused and sometimes, heartbroken.

How to Spot it and Prevent yourself from becoming a victim of Romance scams

Do not fall in love in telegram (I'm sorry if this sounds rude), there is no possible way for you to validate their words and to find out if they are really what they claim. Anyone asking you to send them money so that they can visit you should be blocked or ignored. If talking to the person makes you happy, you can do so, but please be cautious and never give up any sensitive information nor send them large amounts of money of any kind.

Job Scams

Job scams are a type of scam where scammers make promises of a new career, asking you to pay upfront for training or materials. It can also involve being offered non-existent jobs abroad, where you're asked to pay a fee to help organise visas and accommodation. It may also involve a "work at home scheme" where scammers request a registration fee for you to get started. But at the end of the day, you will never get the jobs you were promised and your registration details may even be sold to other scammers.

How to Spot it and Prevent yourself from becoming a victim of Job scams

Any group or channel that claims to be a company and hasn't been verified by the relevant telegram authorities should not be trusted. Never pay for any "opportunities" you see in telegram. If you are looking for a job, use other apps like LinkedIn, which specializes in formal gatherings and searches. Anyone that is posing as someone that can help you get a job for a fee should not be trusted.

Charity Scams

These are scams in which scammers take advantage of good-natured people who want to donate to a good cause or to help find a cure to a sickness. Scammers will collect money by pretending to be a charity organisation using the money to do good and selfless actions. Usually, scammers will often exploit a recent natural disaster or crisis that has been broadcasted on the news. Medical charity scams may often involve scammers using false testimonies from people who have been cured in order to get people to "donate" to them.

How to Spot it and Prevent yourself from becoming a victim of Charity scams

Be cautious of people who claim to work for charity. If you want to donate to any charity on telegram, make sure do to researches on them before donating, especially if you want to donate a large sum of money. Do not donate to any Telegram Channel or group that is labelled as a "Scam" by the relevant telegram authorities.

Lottery or Prize Scams

These are scams that involve you gambling for a prize you'll never win, or "winning" a prize then paying in order to access it. Scammers often use this type of scam to trick victims into thinking that they'll win a prize or groups of prizes if they pay some money. Sometimes, scammers can message you, claiming that you won a competition that you never competed in and that a fee is needed for them to give you your prize.

How to Spot it and Prevent yourself from becoming a victim of Lottery and Prize scams

Be suspicious of anyone claiming that you won a competition you never competed in and never send anyone money to participate in a raffle or to collect your non-existent prize. Report any suspicious group or channel and block any shady accounts.

Conclusion

In conclusion, there are a lot of ways that you can lose money to scams, be cautious and you are most likely to not be a victim of fraudulent activities. Don't trust strangers and be careful of what you share with other people.