Dixya Poudel

When I first started writing as a freelancer, I joined a renowned freelancing site. The site provided people an opportunity to work as freelancers and earn a payment. It sounded promising and had come recommended, so I created my profile and started sending quotes. I got response from several potential employers, one of which seemed lucrative. So I started writing but the prompts that I was requested to write seemed a little bizarre. In a course of several days, I wrote short write-ups in subjects such as travel, arts, entertainment and sports. However, it was a futile endeavour as I eventually learnt that I was being scammed. It only indicated an age-old duplicity in the history of internet.
While I realised I was being scammed early on, there are people who are duped to a lot more than just time and effort. They are scammed off hard earned money through the loopholes of the internet. Today cyber-attacks, hackings and Wiki leaks are a very common occurrence which wreaks havoc in targeted institutions. But internet scams are of a different breed. They take advantage of minds that are vulnerable to frauds.
Often fraudulent emails try to lure people into divulging their bank details, credit and debit card information and valuable passwords. There is an infamous scam called the advance fee scam that is known for its large scale deception. It is also known as the “419 scam.” Usually, victims of such fraud are promised a large sum of money in return of a small dividend. Once the fraudsters gain access to monetary funds, they disappear into thin air leaving behind befuddled victims. Through emails, such fraudsters trick innocent people and earn their confidence only to betray them.
The fact is human world is a constant juggle between the good and the bad. Thus, in every aspect of the world, there have been some forms of deceit and illegal schemes because of the monetary pay-offs. Due to financial incentives, there are preys and predators. It is surprising how often people consider taking the wrong side of the law to make a living. Such people could likely have been victims of their circumstances. And internet has proven to be a haven to black markets, frauds and illegal scams.
If one is to search the internet itself for the information on internet scams, one can find: COVID-19 online scams, fake shopping websites, disaster relief scams, fake antivirus software, travel scams, tech support and phishing scams. Further, fraudulent people tend to disguise themselves as confidantes who later don't think twice in taking advantage of the inherent goodness of their victims. It is quite unnerving how inventive the human minds are in conniving and swindling their fellow humans.
Internet was created as a means of communication and thanks to it the world has become a global village. Emails can be exchanged from one continent to another. Facebook messages can be sent from remote parts of the world. Financial transactions can be carried out from the safety of homes. Students can learn from the grids of internet while people can make a living in the vastness of the interconnected web. However, it is advisable to be aware of scams that can sneak through the portals of the internet into the well-trusted screens.