In conmen, charlatans, scammers and thieves we trust

Posted by Robert Siciliano on March 13th, 2009

Robert Siciliano is a NextAdvisor.com Expert Guest Blogger

An axiom in business is that we buy from and do business with those we know, like and trust. In the 21st century, we have seen CEOs, investment bankers, politicians and those in the highest positions of trust completely screw everyone who put them on their pedestal.

Madoff pleads guilty for orchestrating a 65 billion dollar Ponzi scheme and 3 rows of investors in attendance at his trial clapped, applauded and sang. These are people that bestowed an incredible amount of money on a man that is probably a psychopath.

What does this say about us as a species that trusts so much?

Charles Ponzi began his scheme 100 years ago and was caught 10 years later. The SEC stepped in and stopped him. The SEC didn't stop Madoff. They allowed him to prosper until his operation imploded.

Growing up, most of us were schooled on "Stranger Danger" because our parents were also told not to talk to strangers. Strangers are "strange" therefore dangerous. At least that seemed to be the theory. Unfortunately, I've seen all too often that people we know are sometimes the worst apples in the bunch. Teachers, coaches, clergy, etc.

In a Wall Street Journal article, Bruce Schneier makes the point that, overall, people are good and generally honest. So it's basically true that approaching a stranger probably wouldn't mean imminent danger.

On the other hand, if someone pursues or approaches you, they are essentially giving you unsolicited attention and potentially distracting you from the truth. They may be preparing to take advantage of you in some devious way.

We see this when law enforcement poses as a 14 year old girl in a chatroom and she's quickly approached by 50 men with webcams, snapping pictures of themselves. So in this sense, talking to strangers is bad. Click here for a video.

Nigerian 419 scams are based on one single principle: get to know your mark, get them to like you and they will trust you. Done. They start off as a stranger, then become their victim's night in shining armor, coming to their emotional (and financial) rescue. Click here for a video about scambaiters.

I've talked over and over about insiders at a company maliciously hacking into the network and stealing data. These people aren't strangers, they are the funny drunk dudes at the Christmas party.

You want to prevent being scammed? Prevent data theft? Prevent identity theft? Protect yourself from hackers?

Do not rely exclusively on any one system to protect you. Don't expect the government and their bazillion bureaucratic agencies to protect you. Don't assume that law enforcement or any other authoritative agency will be there when a predator strikes.

All existing systems work often, and fail as much.

Security is about layers. The more layers of protection you have in place, the more difficult you make it for the bad guy to get access. Redundancy, predictive, proactive thinking.

Someone pour me a scotch. Single malt.

Oh, and I'm very excited to work with Uni-ball in 2009 in a partnership to help raise awareness about the growing threat of identity theft and to provide tips for protecting yourself. Check out uniball-na.com for more information.

See identity theft expert Robert Siciliano discuss conman Bernie Madoff here.

Robert Siciliano is CEO of IDTheftSecurity.com , an identity theft expert, professional speaker, security analyst, published author and television news correspondent. Siciliano works with Fortune 1000 companies and startups as an advisor on product launches, branding, messaging, representation, SEO and media. Siciliano's thoughts and advice on all these matters appear often in both the televised and print news media including CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, FOX, Forbes and USA Today. He has 25 years of security training as a member of the American Society of Industrial Security. He is the author of 2 books, including The Safety Minute: Living on High Alert; How to take control of your personal security and prevent fraud.