Why do people fall for the psychological tricks that scammers use? Knowing how to avoid scams isn’t easy because the warning signs aren’t always clear. And sometimes our personality characteristics make us more vulnerable to scamming.

On episode 119 of The Science of Personality, cohosts Ryne Sherman, PhD, and Blake Loepp spoke about what makes us so susceptible to common online scams.

“Most discussion of scams doesn’t focus on the psychology side. They focus on how much money gets lost or blaming the victim,” Ryne observed. “That’s often missing—the psychological aspects that get people tied up in scams.”

Scams in the Age of AI

Technology just makes scamming easier. Despite the benefits of technological transformation, AI and other technological advancements come with psychological risks as well. In a virtual world, people are more susceptible to scams than when face to face. Case in point: a woman recently lost about $850,000 in a romance scam on Instagram that used AI-generated images.

“These scams don’t just happen to individuals. They happen to corporations,” Ryne said. For instance, AI voice reproduction can make the classic CEO impersonation scam even more convincing. “Someday your phone is going to be routed to a scammer who sounds like your boss telling you they need you to transfer money,” he said.

Three Common Types of Online Scams

Some common types of online scams are confidence scams, fake tech support scams, and identity theft scams. Let’s review the warning signs.

Confidence scams

Confidence scams involve scammers building rapport with victims over long periods of time before stealing money. They might start with just a text message from an unknown number that says, “Hi, how are you?” The scammers will spend weeks or months to build a sense of goodwill, friendship, or romance before they start trying to take money. They might tell their victims about a fake financial app that steals money while appearing to grow an investment—all under the guise of being helpful. Confidence scams are also called pig butchering scams as a reference to fattening an animal before slaughter.

Tech support scams

Tech support scams come in a variety of forms—an email or a text that appears to come from a reputable company such as Amazon, McAfee, Norton, PayPal, or Walmart. These scammers con victims into downloading fake software that provides full computer access. They may also offer a fake refund for a charge that was never made. They convince victims to log into their bank accounts to return sums they never actually received. In a variation of this scam, scammers will request gift cards as repayment.

Identity theft scams

Identity theft scams involve scammers pretending to represent law enforcement agencies. The scammers convince victims that their identities have been stolen and used to commit serious crimes. Ultimately, they offer to help the victim clear their identity by asking them to pay, either with a bank account or gift cards.

Why We Are Susceptible to Scams

Enough of us fall for scams to make it worthwhile for scammers to stay in business. Part of that is because we instinctively trust other people. “We tend to think other people aren’t scamming us, and quite frankly, that’s because this works most of the time. If you assume that every single person is trying to scam you, life becomes pretty challenging,” Ryne said. Because we tend to believe others are honest, we often want to reciprocate the friendly and helpful claims of scammers. Basically, if we think someone is trying to help us, we feel disposed to help them back.

Certain people may be more vulnerable to scams. People who are unfamiliar with the internet, social media, or technology are at higher risk. Likewise, people who are unsure of what is legal or illegal could be vulnerable to scams. People facing challenging life circumstances may hope that the false promises of scammers will help them financially.

Personality Characteristics of Scam Victims

Individuals have different personality characteristics that affect how likely they are to fall for online scams. Ryne identified three related scales on the Hogan assessments that may make someone less likely to fall for scams: the Hogan Development Survey’s Sceptical scale, the Hogan Personality Inventory’s Interpersonal Sensitivity scale, and the Altruistic scale of the Motives, Values, Preferences Inventory.

• The Sceptical scale regards confidence or trust in others. Low scorers tend to seem understanding of and trusting in others, while high scorers tend to seem suspicious of and defensive toward others.
• The Interpersonal Sensitivity scale relates to seeming perceptive and socially sensitive. Low scorers are more likely to be critical and skeptical, while high scorers are more likely to be pleasant and avoid confrontation.
• The Altruistic scale is associated with values about helping others and improving society. Low scorers tend to place less importance on helping people, while high scorers tend to seek out opportunities to be helpful.

In the CEO impersonation scam scenario, someone who gets a message that seems to be from their CEO may simply harbor no suspicions. They may also care about earning the CEO’s good opinion and even enjoy helping fulfill a request.

Online Scam Prevention and Warning Signs

If something seems too good to be true, it could be. “I’m about to make a bunch of money through this online trading app that some stranger had me download. Is this really real?” Ryne said. “That should be one of your first red flags.”

One of the best ways to avoid falling for online scams is to verify the source. If you’re contacted by what seems to be tech support or an official institution, hang up, find the contact number for the organization, and call it yourself.

“I know of an individual who was called by [someone who claimed to be a representative of] a specific precinct in New York City. They said his parents were wanted for drug-related crimes and were about to be deported,” Ryne said, explaining that time pressure is another red flag. This person was panicked. He made it all the way to the Target checkout line with gift cards in hand before starting to feel suspicious. He hung up with the scammer, called the precinct directly, and verified that the previous call was a scam.

“Anyone can fall for these things,” Ryne said. “People sharing their stories is more helpful in preventing them than keeping them a secret.”

*This post originally appeared on Hogan Assessments