30BaD FADs: Cyber Safety

30BaD FADs:  Frequently Added Discussions

What does the 30BaD team do about our safety?

What can 30BaD Members do to stay safe?

Things we can do to stay safe here @30BaD and on the net include:

1. Solicitors Beware!
2. Never Give Personal Information to Strangers 
3. Recognize Current Cyber Scam Trends
4. Reminding Children to Stay Safe
5. Socializing is Safe in the Forum
6. Dealing With Strangers Hard Luck Cases

Solicitors Beware! 

Solicitation, spamming and scamming will not be tolerated and violators will have their membership deleted immediately.

Never Give Personal Information to Strangers 

• Ignore this person and their requests, and never give them personal information.
  
• • Never give out personal information such as email addresses, physical home addresses, phone numbers, cell phone numbers that can receive spam texts, check numbers and check routing numbers, your bank information including the name of your bank, credit card numbers, and any other personal information and financial information that can be used for spam, scams, identity theft, and or put you in personal danger by psychopaths. 
    
• If you come across such individuals, please PM or message one of your 30BaD Peacekeepers Team who can be of assistance here:
• • http://www.30bananasaday.com/profiles/friend/listFeatured

Recognize Current Cyber Scam Trends

In researching this, it was found that 99% of the time, the cyber crime would not have happened if the victim would not have shared their personal and financial information.  Although some general examples have been shared, the best bet is to never share personal information with a stranger no matter what kind of sheep's clothing the request comes in:)

• Too Good to Be True 
• Too Sad to Be True
  • Person who does not know you is offering a deal of money that is too good to be true, or they are in circumstances to sad to be true.
  • This is usually accompanied immediately by a request of your personal information including your legal name, address, phone number, and bank account information.  
• Request of email:
• • This may show up like someone who has an interest in romance or friendship.  They ask to take it private via email.
  • Your email HTML may have your IP address encoded.  A psychopath with bits of your name from the forum, your location on your page,  who has your IP address and Google, can possibly find you and your life could be in danger.
  • Your email may be used for future spam for pornographic sites and other goods and services.
  • Your email may be used to load viruses and spyware onto your computer. 
  • Your email may be used for future solicitation of frauds and scams with the most classic one in recent years being the Nigerian Scam where they claim a member of their family has died, they cannot access their bank account, and they need your bank information and a check routing number to do so.  People who have participated in these scams have lost their money, and sometimes encounter identity theft in which future theft and or crimes may be done in their name.
  • • Imagine going to jail for check fraud and bank robbery when you had nothing to do with it?

• Cell Phone Numbers:  Can be used for telemarketing spam, and texting spam with similar offers that may come via email.  The added bonus of this scam is that you are responsible to pay for the fees incurred when you receive these texts.  
• House Addresses:  May be used to physically harass you, theft of valuables in the house, and or for identity theft purposes.
• Phone Numbers:  Telemarketing of future spam and scams.  
• Too Good to be True Sales and Deals:  Sale bait such as computers will be used to get your information.  Then they will ask for a check and or bank routing number.  
• Western Union, Cashier's Check, Ebay, and or Paypal scam:  They may use a "down on their luck" story to get money from you.  Sometimes they use the sale bait tactic mentioned above.
• • They may request that you send the money first and then they will deliver the so called sale bait.  But they never deliver the promised goods. 
  • They may say something like we agreed on the sale price of $100 dollars, I will send you a check for $500, which is almost always fake, and you can send me $400 via Western Union.  Usually their check is fake, and you lose your money without much that can be done about it, and you never receive the promised sale bait goods. 
  • More information and ideas on what the current scams are and how to avoid them: http://www.craigslist.org/about/scams

Reminding Children to Stay Safe

Educating children in avoiding internet predators of all kinds,and the tricks they use to get personal information is important.  

Socializing is Safe in the Forum

Most HCRV lifestyle questions can be answered in the forum and or via PM in complete safety and anonymity.  If someone you do not know is asking for your personal information and financial information, this should be a big red flag.  Please do not acknowledge them and or share your information. 

If in case you do form a long term good friendship or budding romance, it is hoped that discretion and observation for months at a time is used.  Try to meet this person in a public place before inviting them home. 

Dealing With Strangers Hard Luck Cases

If someone is in financial trouble, encourage them to seek help from their local agencies, churches and religious organizations, local charities, get a job, sell stuff, help a farmer with harvest, forage, or dumpster dive if sanitary.   Some so called hard luck cases are actually scams to get free money and or your personal information for future theft and scams.

In general, solicitors, scammers and spammers  are just phishing for information to be used in their future scams.  Just like a hook is harmless to a fish until unless it bites, the same is usually the case with scammers and spammers.  If you do not bite the hook and take the bait, most probably nothing will happen.

These are just safety and common sense protocols to keep in mind, but do not take stress and tension, and please continue to enjoy your visits and have fun. 

Of further interest might be what your team does to keep things running smoothly:

Randomly Members Suspensions

The 30 Bananas a Day Peacekeepers and Team