You bring me happiness that no one else ever could.
You bring to me a love I’ve never known before.
I really couldn’t imagine what my life would be like without you.
You’ve touched my heart in ways no one ever could comprehend.
I love being with you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.
[00:00:19] I am from the United States currently working here in Mexico as a logger.
[00:00:23] I’ll be back in two months' time.
[00:00:24] I’m from Copenhagen, Denmark, but moved to Wichita Falls, Texas.
I’m currently working in Romania now.
[00:00:30] I’ll definitely pay you a visit when I’m done with my contract.
Meeting you would mean so much to me.
What work do you do?
[00:00:35] I’ve been in Korea for 8 months now.
[00:00:42] Can you assist me?
Once I get to the States I’ll pay you back.
[00:00:45] How can you aff–, how much can you afford?
(MUSIC SEGUE)
[00:00:53] Bob: Welcome back to The Perfect Scam.
I’m your host, Bob Sullivan.
And this is a special bonus episode of our podcast.
They catfished the catfishers.
I’ll let David Etue explain.
[00:01:36] Bob: What is your title?
[00:01:37] David Etue: I’m the CEO of Nisos.
[00:01:38] Bob: And what does Nisos do?
[00:01:39] David Etue: Nisos provides managed services for cyberthreat intelligence.
So we work with companies, top tech platforms.
and others to help monitor and investigate adversaries and how they use the internet to create harm.
[00:01:50] Bob: So you’re looking after internet bad guys of all kinds?
[00:01:54] David Etue: Right, so all, all kinds.
[00:02:34] David Etue: Yeah.
Not dating services, mind you, just social media profiles.
The profiles went live February 7th of this year.
The plan was to wait a few months and see what happened.
That plan went out the window fast.
[00:03:53] David Etue: Yes.
It was so intense the experiment didn’t even have to last a month.
And even we were surprised at the, at the speed of engagement.
So we ended up changing the, the priority of this in our research process.
The initial conversations sounded harmless enough, but they were anything but.
[00:04:41] So tell me, do you still have your parents?
[00:04:44] Do you stay alone?
[00:04:45] Do you live in your own house or is it rented?
[00:04:47] What do you do to overcome your economic expense?
[00:04:50] Do you have a house or a car?
[00:04:52] How many houses do you have?
[00:04:53] So are you happily married with kids?
[00:04:56] Do you live alone?
[00:04:57] So what is your occupation and how long have you been working at your current job?
Do they own their home?
Do they live alone or have family close by.
[00:06:44] Bob: The vetting process actually serves two purposes.
[00:07:44] You’re welcome.
I love the way you talk, and I’m happy to meet you here in this platform.
I will like us to know each other more, better.
But I don’t chat here very often due to the nature of my job.
[00:08:58] Bob: Why do that?
Why move to a different chat tool?
There’s almost always a plea for sympathy right away, like this one.
[00:09:29] David Etue: “My childhood wasn’t really fun though.
My mother died giving birth to me, so I never really experienced a mother’s love.
My dad was so strict, he wanted the best and nothing but the best from me.
So we, we see a lot, a lot of requests um, for gift cards.
[00:10:52] Bob: It’s not only gift cards though.
[00:11:10] I don’t want us to rush into traveling.
We must consider each other’s timing and availability.
I’m a military personnel, and without an authorized withdrawal I can’t leave here.
And then we can spend time together immediately the process is done and I’m back to the States.
[00:11:46] Bob: This is an example of money mule grooming.
In this kind of scam, the criminal doesn’t ask directly for payment from the victim.
That helps criminals evade tools designed to catch illegal movement of money.
And they learn from each other which is why they seem to come armed with answers for everything.
For example, it’s natural to ask a potential romantic partner for a video chat after a while.
A video chat would likely expose a criminal, but they have a ready-made answer for that request.
[00:13:31] Are you for real?
Can I see a picture of you?
[00:13:33] I can’t take my eyes off your lovely smile.
Can I get another picture of you?
[00:13:38] Can I have a full picture of you?
[00:13:39] I want you to do nude for me.
Why do they do that?
[00:14:07] David Etue: I’d say yes.
They may be chatting with many, many personas.
[00:15:50] Bob: I think that’s really interesting.
[00:16:05] David Etue: Very much so.
In a similar way, non sequiturs can also be a red flag.
Those jumps in conversations.
You know the second is, is around friend requests.
Be diligent about the, the friend requests you accept.
[00:19:07] Bob: So report any interactions you have with criminals.
And not just to the social media company you’re using.
Images of family members.
An email address or a phone number.
Common valuable assets like if you own a car, income or net worth.
Technological capabilities such as a bitcoin wallet.
Living status like proximity to children or roommates.
Information related to your age such as things like favorite artists or musicians which you might not think of.
Employment status and work experience.
And former schools and mascots.
Impatience or guilt-inducing tactics if you’re delayed in responding.
Requests to email or message additional accounts with personal information.
Requests to send money to their company or to fund a leave trip.
Demands for receipts alongside sending money.
Requests for gift cards.
Requests to change social media or chat platforms.
Inability to video chat.
Attempts to elicit sympathy.
Inconsistent details in someone’s story.
Military impersonators or other individuals claiming to be US citizens working in a foreign country.
Use of unfamiliar terms of inconsistent grammar.
The presence of images on social media accounts with different names.
it’s possible for you to do a reverse Google image search to find that out.
Seemingly random questions such as whether or not you know how to drive or have access to a vehicle.
For The Perfect Scam, I’m Bob Sullivan.
Call the AARP Fraud Watch data pipe Helpline at 877-908-3360.
Their trained fraud specialists can provide you with free support and guidance on what to do next.
Be sure to find us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
For AARP’s The Perfect Scam, I’m Bob Sullivan.
Wait until you hear what happens.
