Most common types include:
Romance scams: The fraudster preys on the victim's need for affection by establishing an online romantic relationship through social media or dating platforms, to later persuade them to send money to the fraudster.
Investment scams: The scammer sets up a fake investment website promising easy and high returns with little or no risk. When the victim deposits the money, it becomes clear that such a return never existed.
Advance fee scams: The fraudster sends an email or letter to the victim stating that there is a large sum of money, for example that the victim has won a lottery or an inheritance, but there are some fees that must be paid before the large sum is released.
CEO scams: The fraudster poses as the victim's boss or senior manager and convinces them to make an urgent payment or change payment details for a contract or supplier. The fraudster gains access to the company's business email account through hacking or spoofing.
Mule accounts: In this case, the fraudster convinces genuine individuals to act as 'money mules' for him, most often by paying the victim a portion of the fraudulently obtained funds. The 'mules' may be duped or willing to accept payments into their own e-money accounts from (unknown to them) stolen cards/accounts. They are then instructed to transfer the funds to an account under the fraudster's control.
Gift card scams: gift cards are similar to cash and scammers exploit this by contacting victims with urgent situations, instructing them to purchase gift cards from specific stores, and providing the card numbers and PINs to access the loaded money, resulting in permanent loss of money for the victim.
Deepfake: voice fraud is a relatively new method of attack but one that has proven highly effective. As the name suggests, a criminal fakes the voice of somebody else with software that can successfully copy his/her voice via a small audio sample.
Employment scams: Scammers target job seekers, offering fake employment opportunities or requiring payment for job applications, pre-employment checks, or training.