Tips on How to Spot A Scam

(I have this blog drafted a few years ago and it was not published.. so I'm publishing it now :))

How it all started

I got a call from a certain Col. Hernani Acosta and told me that he is the National Adviser of a group in Camp Aguinaldo (forgot to note and I don't remember the group name)

Col Acosta was asking me for donations to help in "balik-eskwela". He said that it's a fundraising project to help children in the armed forces.

I asked him how he got my contact number and he said that it's in their database. He gave me details on where to send the money and advised me that he will call me again to follow up.

How I learned about the scam

The organization I am connected to are serving in City Jail so I thought that they got my number from them but I doubled check just to be sure.

I search for Camp Aguinaldo's number in the net and asked them about the program and If they know Col Acosta. They said that they don't know him and also advised me that it is a scam when I told them about my conversation with col. Acosta.


I googled the net after and found these.
https://adbontures.wordpress.com/2018/11/12/col-acosta-scam/

http://www.scamcallfighters.com/scam-call-09287531400-Hernani-Acosta-scam--will-invite-you-to-join-a-charity---be-scammed-Fake-Charity-37238.html

https://tipidpc.com/viewtopic.php?tid=112047&page=97

http://baguiomidlandcourier.com.ph/business.asp?mode=%20archives/2015/august/8-16-2015/bus2-Baguio-businessmen-receive-suspicious-solicitation-letters.txt

They are scamming people for years already and some people still fall for their scam.

How to Spot a SCAM

1. Contacting you out of the blue

You did not sign up for their program but they have your contact number.

If this happens, ask them where and how they get your information and also get information from them that you can use later to check more about their company and their offer.

2. Money is involved

They are soliciting, borrowing or they are asking for your money to be invested somewhere.

If the one asking money is a friend, make sure to call him/her to verify it's really your friend you are communicating with. 

There are several instances I have seen on facebook (one happened to a friend of mine) where someone is using a friend's Facebook account asking for money but it turns out that his account is compromised/hacked and can't login to his account.

3. Urgent / Rush / Emergency

When someone is asking you to decide immediately on the matter, or if someone is asking you to do something because it's an emergency.

If this happens, try to relax and think (you cannot think clearly if you are in a panic mode). If there is someone near you, ask for their opinion before deciding on the matter.

4. Asking personal information

I got a call several months ago who claims to be from a credit card company and he is asking me personal information. I decline from answering their questions because if they are really from my credit card company, they already have my information. They don't have to ask me that.

If ever someone calls asking for personal information, please think twice before answering because people can use your personal information to scam others or use it to obtain loans or purchase goods using your name.