Member-only story
When Scammy-looking Emails Aren’t Really Scams
And artificial intelligence fails
It’s a proven fact that older people are easier marks for scammers than their younger counterparts. I’m one of those geezers — but not somebody a grifter can get over on easily. That’s why I didn’t believe the come-on that came in my email box. Oddly, it wasn’t a scam after all. Here’s the cautionary tale:
It had all the earmarks of a phishing scheme. An email, supposedly from Venmo, offered me a quick $10. All I had to do was link my Venmo account to my bank or credit card and they’d hand over a ten-spot.
I know how to spot scam emails. I’m not that stupid. Check for misspellings and grammatical errors. There were none. Check the source of the email. It came from Venmo.com.
But it also had a time limit to score the money and a come-on that it wouldn’t take more than a few seconds.
What would you think? About six months ago, I had set up a Venmo account to get paid from a quick acting gig I got on Casting Networks. But then when I saw I could get paid through Zelle, I never linked up the account with my bank or used it. But I did set up a…
