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Have You Been Scammed Online Before?
New research suggests it’s not your fault. It might be genetic
When I arrived for our Sunday lunch, Grandma was crying.
“I just got scammed out of more than $300! I don’t understand. He sounded so kind and caring. He was even smiling.”
“How do you know?”
“I could hear it in his voice!”
Grandma had been scammed out of $317 with the classic “There’s an issue with your credit card statement.”
Scammers use non-round numbers like 317 because they’re more credible. Paradoxically, this type of number tricks our brains into thinking the number isn’t random or made up.
That’s what Dr. Ponio from the Institute of Online Applied Psychology¹ told me. Funnily enough, it’s also a known negotiation technique. It’s better to reply with a non-round number when making a counteroffer. Oddly specific numbers make the other party think you have done your research, and your proposition seems backed by solid arguments rather than a random figure tossed out to save some money.
“We often use our psychological biases for good,” said Dr. Ponio, “That’s why they exist in the first place.” Indeed, psychological biases are often simplified heuristics our brains use to assess situations faster…
